In May of 2015 Naylor Wentworth Lund Architects completed a facility needs assessment for four of our buildings, the District Office, Middle School, High School and Loa Elementary.  The entire document is available HERE.  The Wayne County School Board welcomes public input as we work on putting together a 5-15 year facilities plan.  We recognize that we have significant needs in many areas and that we need a strategic approach to maximize our investment in our facilities.

A summary of the facilities assessment:

• The facility assessment team included staff from Naylor Wentworth Lund Architects as well as structural, mechanical, and electrical consultants.
• General observations included:

o   Accessibility issues such as insufficient railings, inadequate paths of travel to entrances, and non-compliant door hardware.

o   Main office not being located in a prominent place to allow for visual control of the front entrance, primarily for student safety and protection.

o   Stress on building systems not designed to support additions made over the years

o   Old mechanical systems and low levels of fresh air

o   A general lack of power outlets and an inadequate electrical infrastructure for required upgrades

o   Failing exteriors such as roofs

o   Well-worn interior finishes such as floor coverings, ceilings and wall finishes.

o   The oldest portions of each of the existing buildings were not constructed to account for the level of seismic protection required by current code standards.

• As part of the facilities assessment the architects made specific recommendations that addressed those items identified that affect life safety and are the most feasible to undertake.  They also provided estimated costs for the recommendations.

Right now our priority and focus is on planning how to implement portions of the recommendations over the next 5-15 years.

As you review the recommendations provided keep in mind that:

• We have determined that implementing all of the recommendations immediately is extremely cost prohibitive and not an option.
• Our priority is the schools.  There are recommendations for repairs and possible replacement for the district office, but the Board has already made first priority the schools.
• We are considering combining the High School and Middle School in the same building footprint.    One of the possible recommendations was to combine the High School, Middle School, and Elementary.  However, there are major concerns with combining this many age groups, and when the architects presented the option they said it probably wasn’t as cost effective as they had initially thought it would be.
• None of the recommendations are in work.  This is very preliminary and significant decisions will not be made without the opportunity for public input before the final proposal.