ROGERS -- Several hundred students in the Rogers School District will start the coming school year in portable buildings because of remodeling projects at three elementary schools.
The school with the most students affected is Northside Elementary School, where eight portable buildings are planned, each with two classrooms.
Rogers Renovations
An overview of the renovations being done at three Rogers elementary schools, including a partial list of the improvements being made:
SchoolYear school openedProject Cost^Architect/construction firmProject highlights
Lowell1951$8.6 millionHight Jackson Associates/Nabholz ConstructionNew entrance with canopy out front; several additional classrooms; an expanded kitchen
Northside1954$8.2 millionCore Architects/Baldwin and Shell ConstructionNew entrance with double-locked entryway; new nursing and counseling spaces
Westside1964$7.8 millionModus Studio/Milestone ConstructionNew secure entry; new roof, HVAC and sprinkler systems; terra-cotta exterior on south side and an extended canopy
^- Based on guaranteed maximum price approved by School Board
Source: Staff report
Kindergartners and special-education students are the only children who will spend the whole year in the school's main building, said Charles Lee, assistant superintendent for general administration.
The school district originally planned to use four portable buildings at Northside. Unforeseen complications in the project, however, required the addition of four more, making a total of 16 classes that will meet outside the main building.
Officials hope to move eight classrooms back into the main building by October. The other eight, for fourth- and fifth-graders, likely will be used until the remodeling project is completed, Lee said.
Northside, Lowell and Westside elementary schools are undergoing renovations that started in June. The goal is to finish all of them by August 2020.
Lowell and Westside will each use four portable buildings, likely for the entire school year.
All of the three schools are more than 50 years old. The district is spending about $25 million to modernize the buildings. The money is coming from a 3.5-mill tax increase that voters approved in 2017.
Northside, which opened in 1954, is getting a new reception area and office. The existing office area will be converted to space for nurses and counseling. Millwork, paint, ceilings, doors and flooring will be added. The roof, fire sprinklers, fire alarm system, and heating and air conditioning systems will be replaced.
Northside is expecting 430-440 students this school year. Principal Anita Turner said having the portable classrooms will require some changes to normal school-day procedures, particularly when kids are moving from one place to another.
"Instruction will go on and kids will learn," she said.
Melissa Turner, Northside's parent-teacher association president, has a daughter in fifth grade who will be in a portable classroom all year.
"She's excited about it," Melissa Turner said. "It's fun and exciting to her."
Melissa Turner said she's pleased that the portable buildings have restrooms and water fountains. She's also pleased about the school's plan for working around the construction and how the plan is being communicated to parents.
"Northside has needed tender loving care for a long time," she said.
On July 16, administrators received board approval to increase the contingency fund for the Northside project by $400,000 to cover issues that have popped up since work began.
Construction crews discovered that the building wasn't grounded and that additional steel was needed to reinforce some walls. Wiring in the building is old and out of code, and more electrical work is needed than was initially thought, according to information from the district.
The Rogers district's first day of school is Aug. 14.
Metro on 08/05/2019