Acton Agua Dulce Unified School District

Facilities Committee Site Visit Report As of July 14, 2005

The Facilities Committee has completed site visits to each of the five schools in the Acton – Agua Dulce Unified School District. The main focus of these visits was to determine the condition of each school and to see what facilities needs are lacking at these schools. The time spent at each campus ranged from 45 minutes to just over two hours. Although we tried to be as complete as possible, this short amount of time indicates that our evaluations regarding specific deficiencies may not have identified 100% of the issues. We did not crawl under any sub floors nor did we climb upon any roofs.

We’d like to thank the district staff and administration for assisting us with these visits. This report is broken down by school and the type of needs found at each school. These lists need to be prioritized district wide and given the resources available, pursued with areas of greatest need given highest priority. The deferred maintenance budget, the ability to fund raise and the amount of volunteer help should be considered in these decisions.

In general not enough resources have been allocated or expended to maintaining our schools in the past. This has resulted in significant deterioration in certain areas. On a positive note our district projects that the funding available in the deferred maintenance account will have a balance of just over one-half a million dollars in it at the end of the 2005-6 fiscal year. Community members have expressed much local volunteer interest and possess many of the needed skills. We are confident that much progress will be made.

Agua Dulce Elementary School

State of the School Agua Dulce Elementary is the oldest active elementary school currently in the district and therefore is in the greatest need of maintenance resources. That being said this school is aesthetically pleasing and serves our district well. It just needs some TLC.

Maintenance Issues · The plywood skirting on some of the relocatable classrooms and relocatable restrooms needs replacement · The roof on the MPR room needs replacement or repair · Handicap access ramps need to be installed on room 212 (music room) and the staff room · Dead latch needs to be replaced with a normal latch on at least one first grade classroom (emergency exit issue)

· Drinking fountain sinks need replacing · The east outside wall of the MPR room has some wood damage that needs repair · The MPR and many of the other buildings need painting · Room 206 has a hole in the south wall that needs repair · There are many damaged and some missing ceiling tiles that need replacement · Much of the carpet is in need of replacement · Much work is needed to improve the restroom facilities including new flooring and painting particularly in the relocatable restrooms which are the oldest relocatable restrooms in the district · Weeds in the kindergarten sandbox need to be removed · Sand needs to be added to the upper and lower playground sandboxes · The hill along Frascati Street needs to be landscaped · Landscaping is needed particularly in the area around the lower parking lot. The weeds need to be removed and a low-maintenance landscaping plan should be put into place.

· The shed in the parking lot next to the red shed needs to be removed and replaced with a new one · A tree has heaved the parking lot entrance sidewalk. These offending roots need to be removed and new asphalt installed.

Facility Wish List · Storage space is short. An additional cargo container that can be used to store tools, maintenance equipment and supplies is needed. Additional storage is needed near the MPR room, so that the clutter can be stored outside the MPR room.

· Many of the classrooms have blackboards rather than whiteboards · The MPR room has no stage. A removable stage is needed, so no lunch seating capacity is lost.

· Trees, Trees, Trees – Steve says he’ll take as many as he can get as long as they are appropriate for school use.

Vasquez High School

State of the School Vasquez High consists entirely of relocatable builds and has the greatest need for the construction of permanent structures. Aesthetically this school is on land with wonderful views of Parker and Gleason mountains and is well laid out. It has a rather large semi-circular quad consisting of native dirt. Ground cover in this quad would greatly improve the aesthetics of this temporary campus, but never has been accomplished because of this temporary nature. Maintenance Issues · There are damaged and some missing ceiling tiles that need replacement · Much of the carpet is in need of replacement · Other carpet is in need of cleaning · Paint needed on some classrooms (insides and out)

· The relocatable restrooms need maintenance Facility Wish List · Trim paint – change from green to purple (the school’s color) on the buildings still trimmed in green · Improve signage identifying the school · Additional landscaping – trees and scrubs particularly · Permanent Facilities Acton Elementary School State of the School Acton Elementary School is the oldest school in the district and therefore is in need of maintenance resources. About half of the classrooms here are permanent with the other half being relocatable. This school is currently closed except for one Success Academy classroom, the District Offices, the bus maintenance and storage yard and Champions. Maintenance Issues · Kitchen needs flooring resealed, paint and a new sink.

· There are damaged and some missing ceiling tiles that need replacement · Much of the carpet is in need of replacement · Other carpet is in need of cleaning · Paint needed in some classrooms (most of the exterior was painted last year)

· The restrooms need maintenance · The old playground equipment needs upgrading · Lines on the playground asphalt need repainting Facility Wish List · Since this school is closed we did not address the wish list

High Desert Middle School

State of the School High Desert Middle School is about 15 years old with three-quarters of the classrooms being permanent with the rest being relocatables. Maintenance resources are needed at this school. Maintenance Issues · There are some damaged ceiling tiles that need replacement · Much of the carpet is in need of replacement · Other carpet is in need of cleaning · Paint needed in many classrooms · Some exterior trim painting is needed · MPR room is in need of painting · MPR stage needs resurfacing · MPR folding table storage area needs backing · MPR shades need replacement · MPR court lines need repainting · Outside basketball/volleyball lines need repainting · The courtyard lawn is a high traffic area and needs reseeding Facility Wish List · Additional sidewalks are needed in the courtyard to ease student traffic pattern on the grass lawn · A significant amount of additional fencing for strategic security/safety zones · Two relocatable classrooms · One relocatable restroom (purchased, but not yet installed)

· Indoor and outdoor security cameras for campus surveillance

Meadowlark Elementary School

State of the School Meadowlark Elementary is the newest elementary school in the district and therefore is in the best condition of all the schools. Maintenance Issues · There are some damaged ceiling tiles that need replacement due to minor roof leaks in the main building (the leaks themselves have been fixed)

Facility Wish List · Repainting the playground markings and adding games (i.e. four square courts, hop scotch, etc.)

· Additional storage space is needed to reduce clutter · Four relocatable classrooms · One relocatable restroom (purchased, but not yet installed)

A General Comment Regarding Earthquake Safety

One recurring item that was not placed on any of these lists is the concern for earthquake safety. There are many bookcases (and other heavy furniture) that are not anchored in place to prevent movement in the event of a major earthquake. This item is of concern to all of the schools. A General Comment Regarding Shade Many of our schools lack adequate outdoor protection from the sun. Long term it is felt the best solution is the use of natural trees. Short term the only solution seems to be the installation of shade structures. All of our operating schools are deficient in this area. Some draft ideas regarding:

Facility Developmental Guideline Recommendations

The Facilities Committee recommends to the Board of Trustees adopt the following guidelines regarding the development of facilities in the district:

Build permanent structures instead of semi-permanent structures. This is particularly important for the core structures of our schools including restrooms, cafeterias, multi-purpose rooms and athletic facilities.

Own structures rather than lease structures.

Minimize or eliminate the impact of facilities budgets on the general fund. Our general fund is needed to educate our children on a day-to-day basis.

Keep a five-year enrollment project plan updated each year and included projected new housing estimates in these projects. Develop a Facilities Master Plan using these guidelines that projects facilities needs ten to twenty years into the future and update this plan when needed.

When semi-permanent relocatable buildings placed, place them at a site where they can stay on a semi-permanent basis (i.e. try not to move relocatable buildings around).

Maximize the amount of state matching construction aid as possible.

Involve the communities in facility planning.

Project in advance when a school needs to be closed due to declining enrollment. Involve the community one year in advance of the proposed closure. Conform as much as possible to local community standards requirements.

Combine facility with other governmental or local organizations. Joint-use projects are encouraged.

Encourage consolidated schools sites to maximize efficiency and facility usage and minimize transportation issues. An example of this is a high school that includes an area for a separate continuation school both located on the same physical site.

Avoid construction of small inefficient schools to maximize efficiency and facility usage.

Facilities Committee
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