July 2021 Design and Construction Update

Jul 15, 2021

District Administration is working closely with our design team (DLR Group) and contractors (Stahl for Olmsted Elementary School; Stahl for Elementary School #2; Two Rivers Group for UHS HVAC). Below you’ll find an updated summary of actions that have been taking place for multiple construction projects.

PROJECT UPDATES

Olmsted Elementary

Olmsted Elementary will open this fall for the 2021-22 school year.

  • AREA ‘A’ & ‘D’
    • These areas are complete and scheduled for DLR punch list on July 13, 2021.
      • Once DLR’s list is received, the list will be distributed to the contractors to complete.
  • Area ‘B’ & ‘C’
    • Painting continues at the ceiling and walls in the commons area.
    • Casework and specialty items are being installed at makerspaces and teacher lounge.
    • Tile at the kitchen floor is complete and has started at the main commons restroom.
    • Gym has been painted, basketball hoops are installed and it is ready for flooring.
    • Ductwork is complete except the north makerspace room in area B.
    • Startup of the cooling tower, chiller, boiler, water heaters and air handlers has been completed.
    • Kitchen equipment is scheduled for delivery July 15th.
  • Site / Exterior
    • The main entry concrete walk, south parking lot walks and the courtyard walks have been poured.
    • Metal wall panels continue on the east face of the building and at the north 2nd floor curtain wall.
    • The retaining wall at the detention pond is complete.
    • The grading contractor is working on grading for walks and removing excess soil from the site.
    • The fencing contractor removed the temporary site fence, installed the fence posts at the courtyard playground and is installing the chain link fencing at the pond.
    • The irrigation contractor has been onsite installing sleeves for his piping under the sidewalks.
  • Upcoming Inspections / Concerns
    • Stahl will be meeting with the City of Urbandale and Urbandale Fire to do a pre-inspection on July 16th with a certificate of occupancy inspection scheduled for July 28th.
    • The glass handrail at the learning stairs and 2nd level balcony have been delayed due to material issues and are set to arrive the week of July 19th.  We have been in constant discussion with Clark Glass who is supplying and installing the rails and they are prepared to do what is necessary to get them installed as soon as possible after they arrive.

Elementary School #2 (Valerius site)

  • School Board approved the Design Development during the April 26 School Board Meeting:
  • Valerius Demolition and Construction Presentation July 2021:
    Thank you to our Valerius Elementary neighbors for submitting questions regarding the upcoming demolition and construction process beginning this summer (2021) on the Valerius site. DLR Group (design), Stahl (construction), and UCSD have incorporated answers to your questions into the following pre-recorded presentation. (Note: When viewing the video, you’re welcome to select Closed Captions in your preferred language.) The pre-recorded presentation can also be found on the UCSD Construction Central site along with a quick overview document containing key points from the presentation.
  • During the July 12 School Board Meeting, the Board approved:
    • A construction contract in the amount of $1,976,800 for the Lump Sum Base Bid for S.M. Hentges & Sons, Inc. for the construction of the Valerius Elementary School: Demolition/Earthwork/Utilities Contract. 
    • The Construction Testing and Special Inspections Contract as continuation of earlier provided design phase Geotechnical Services for Terracon Consulting Engineers for services during the construction of the Valerius ES Demo/Earthwork/Utilities Contract.
    • A motion to establish a Public Hearing Date of September 13, 2021 to hear any public comments regarding the Urbandale New Elementary School #2 project.
    • A motion to establish a Bid Date of September 2, 2021 at 2pm to receive bids for the Urbandale New Elementary School #2 project.
  • Urbandale City Council approved the ES #2 site plan on July 13, 2021.
  • During construction (2021-22 and 2022-23 school years), all Valerius students and staff will attend school at the Jensen Elementary site. As all Jensen students/staff will have moved into the new Olmsted building, Valerius students and staff will be the only occupants in the Jensen building. 
  • Bus Transportation: Any student who resides in the Valerius attendance area will be provided bus service free of charge to the Jensen site. This is true for all Valerius zones (free, pay, and walk). Families may sign up for bus transportation during the spring online registration process. Routes and stops will be created based on the requests received. Open enrolled students are able to purchase bussing from established stops if they would like. Bussing is optional. Students are not required to utilize the bus service. The bus service is for school hours only (Note: If a parent is utilizing Adventuretime Before/After School Childcare there would not be bussing early or late in the day to access that service).


PPEL PROJECT UPDATES

UHS HVAC Renovations

  • Several punch list items are outstanding and are being addressed.
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