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Four school districts will start construction Projects range from roofs to new buildings By Damian Mann Four Jackson County school districts, flush with $85 million in voter-approved bonds, will break ground this summer on projects ranging from repairing a leaking roof to building new schools. All districts have hired or soon will hire managers and architects for the projects, which will alleviate crowding and renovate buildings deteriorating from age. Approved by voters last year, the bonds will help modernize and expand schools in Eagle Point, Central Point, Rogue River and Phoenix-Talent. Homeowners will pay for the improvements through tax hikes that range from $1 to $2 for each $1,000 in assessed valuation. Eagle Point Superintendent William Jones� 4,000-student district will be receiving $34 million. "We want to remove all our trailers" where students are housed, he said. "That�s our goal. Some of these trailers are 20 years old." The dilapidated portable classrooms will be removed from Glenn D. Hale, Little Butte, Mountain View and White City elementary schools. Permanent classrooms will be built at Shady Cove School and at Mountain View in White City. A new middle school is also planned for White City. The district will raze Eagle Point Junior High School to build a new middle school and will construct a new elementary school to serve 350 students. A project manager and architects should be chosen by the end of the month and groundbreaking should occur between May and mid-July. Central Point, with $29.8 million in bonds, is poised to undertake six projects to upgrade its aging facilities that house 4,600 students. "We don�t have a timeline yet on the projects, but we do intend to start in June," said Superintendent Candace Manary. Central Point recently hired Craig Hartl as project manager. Hartl is retiring from Asante Health System as its regional manager of facilities and construction. Manary said the school board will choose an architect for the projects at its meeting next week. Voters approved classrooms and a multipurpose auditorium at Crater High School. More classrooms will be added to Hanby Middle School and Richardson Elementary School. Hanby and Central Point will remodel two run-down buildings erected at the beginning of the last century. A new site will be found for the transportation area and the maintenance and food service facilities will be moved to Jewett Elementary School. Because of continuing student growth, the district is planning to purchase more land to build a future school. Phoenix-Talent has slated $16.2 million in improvements at all five of its schools as well as construction of a new district office. "This should hold us fine for eight to 10 years. It just depends on how quickly the development moves in southeast Medford," said Superintendent Dave Willard. Willard hopes to get the plans finalized in the spring and anticipates completing most projects in August 2002. Schools in the 2,500-student district will get overhauls of their heating and air conditioning systems. A new choir room and tiered seating in the auditorium will be installed at the high school. Talent Middle School will receive five new classrooms and general repairs to offices, the roof, gym ceiling and windows. New cafeterias will be built at Phoenix and Talent elementary schools. Orchard Hill Elementary School will get four new classrooms. Rogue River, with the smallest bond measure � $5.4 million � hopes to make big improvements to its facilities. The high school will replace its flat and leaking roof with a sloped metal roof. Evans Valley Elementary School, built 77 years ago in this 1,250-student district, is scheduled for a classroom annex and other improvements. Rogue River Middle School has plans for new classrooms. Superintendent Charles Hellman said a project manager and architects will be chosen soon. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476 or [email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.