The month of September was a productive and exciting time for the new Miami Trace High School project, according to an update from the school district’s business manager Bill Franke.
“The project turned a huge corner as the site contractor began to move dirt in preparation for our new school,” said Franke.
On Sept. 27, contractors began removing topsoil and preparing a temporary driveway to access the construction site. Removing topsoil is an important first step in the construction process, said Franke, as it begins to prepare the site for a suitable base for the building and for the roadways and parking lots.
Once the topsoil is removed, contractors will begin installing the infrastructure for the project, such as storm sewer lines, electrical conduit, and parking and roadway bases. The team will also begin to prepare the building foundation pad by removing unsuitable soil and lime-stabilizing the area so that there is a solid footing under the new school.
Finally, they will install a base of pavement in the parking areas that will serve as a clean and efficient space to store and sort materials, provide contractor parking, and spaces for contractor trailers. The site contractor schedule indicates that work will continue throughout the months of October, November and December (weather-permitting) in order to prepare for the start of building construction in early spring.
The contractor that is installing the geo-thermal wells will be on site beginning the week of Oct. 17.
“As with our other new schools, the new high school will be heated and cooled using energy from the earth,” said Franke. “This is a very efficient system and will save our taxpayers significant energy cost over the life of the building.”
This project will feature as many as 286 geo-thermal vertical wells that will be 300 feet deep. These closed-loop wells will provide warm water during the winter months and cool water during the summer months that will feed high-efficiency heat/cooling units within the building.
“The project team has also been very busy working on the final design of the building,” said Franke. “The team is working on the small details, such as paint colors, flooring materials, furniture, signage and equipment.”
As of Sept. 30, the design team was 50 percent completed with the “CD” (construction documents) that will be used to bid and build the actual building. It’s anticipated that the final design documents will be completed in November.
A 3.9-mill, 37-year bond issue was passed by the taxpayers at the May 2015 special election, setting in motion the plans to replace the current high school with a new state-of-the-art facility. The new structure will be located on a nearly 60-acre piece of farmland to the east of the football stadium.
The new high school is on track to be approximately 160,000 square feet. In comparison, the Miami Trace Elementary School is 141,000 square feet, the middle school is 91,000 square feet, and the current high school (which opened in 1962) is approximately 127,000 square feet.
“At this time, the team does not foresee any issues that will delay the anticipated opening of the school in January 2019,” said Franke. “The project is proceeding well thanks to a strong design and construction team, as well as solid support from our community and board of education.”
