Valley Center

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It is the centerpiecse of a $57.5 millio bond voters approved last June. The bond’s passage — as well as severa other area school bonds gave local contractors and architectas an opportunity to secure more work as commerciapl construction waned last fall with the onset of theeconomic “We get a space for some we try and fill it,” says Randy Coonrod, president of the construction manager for Valley Center’s bond “Valley Center fit us great.
We’ver been fortunate we’ve always been able to fill our Coonrod also is workingon $50 million worthg of school construction in Chapman, and likelt will bid on some of the work from $370 million bond issue voters approveds last fall. “We follow and do schools all Coonrod says. “It’s one of our major Bond work also is helping architectsw fill gaps in theirwork portfolios. is working on Valley Center’e bond projects as well as a $16.3 milliojn renovation to . Forty percent of the firm’ds Wichita portfolio is in school jobs.
Ken Helmer, one of the firm’xs managing principals, says bond work comes during what has been a toughn yearfor private-sector projects. “We’re just seeinf 2009 as a treading-water year,” Helmer told the in January. He said then securinh work on Wichita’s bond was perfect timing for the firm becauser it would be nearing completion onValleyt Center’s bond and finishing a high schoop addition in Haysville. On Schedule, Under Budget Work on Valleyu Center’s bond projects continues to move forwardxon schedule, says Scott Springston, the district’s superintendent.
Installing artificia turf on the high school football fielc was the first bondproject completed. Expansion s at the district’s three elementarh schools are progressingas well. Bids for thosd and several other projects, Springston were less than initial projections. The high school is one such The $34 million price tag is about $2.6 million less than originallyu thought. “It’s great to be in a situationn where bidsare under,” Springston says. He says lowere costs could free up extra money to fund project that were eliminated from the bond plan or reduced tocontrool costs, such as technology improvements.
The high schooll will have an 1,100-student capacity, two floors, a top-loadedf gym where people access seating from the second and 10tennis courts. The site won’t include any other athleti c facilities. “We will definitely have the capacituy to hostlarge events,” Springsto says. Valley Center also has starterd the design phase for its transportationj facility andcentral office. The district hopes to have all of the bond work completesd byJuly 2011. “Everything is running on schedule,” Springstonj says.