GILROY
– School board trustees Thursday night decided to get an early
start on clearing the Eliot Elementary School campus so
construction can begin as soon as legally possible.
By Lori Stuenkel
GILROY – School board trustees Thursday night decided to get an early start on clearing the Eliot Elementary School campus so construction can begin as soon as legally possible.
A new Eliot is scheduled to open in less than 18 months. The district originally planned to demolish and rebuild Eliot as soon as architectural plans for the two-story, 22-room school building are approved by the state early this spring. The 13-month construction period could begin in late April, at the earliest.
That small amount of leeway in Gilroy Unified School District’s $10-million construction project left some trustees, Eliot staff and parents feeling uneasy, but the tearing down of the building right away could save a month down the road.
In the interest of saving time, trustees decided to pull demolition from the general construction and begin tearing down Eliot next month.
“We feel that this will save time up-front,” said Charlie Van Meter, director of facilities and maintenance operations for GUSD. “We will save some time on the front end of the contract, so that will save time on the end of the contract.”
Although trustees last month asked if it would be more prudent to hire someone to demolish the school in advance of the general construction project, Van Meter said demolition would take a minimal amount of time. Splitting the project up could actually create more work for the district to solicit two separate contracts, he said.
Five of seven trustees voted to allow district staff to contract out for demolition, predicted to cost $194,000 from Measure I funds that are covering the Eliot project. Two trustees, Tom Bundros and TJ Owens, were absent.
Demolition is expected to take four weeks and will include removal of asphalt, landscaping and utilities.
“I think it’s important to move forward and get the project started,” Trustee David McRae said. “At least it gets them started.”
Once demolition is complete and the school plans are returned from the state, construction will start immediately.
Trustees also said Thursday that meetings between the district and Eliot neighbors should be held as soon as possible. GUSD officials have said they will hold a neighborhood meeting to go over plans for the school, construction schedules and traffic concerns. A meeting will likely take place in late March or early April, said Construction Manager Gary Corlett.
Mayor Al Pinheiro wondered why GUSD did not get community feedback before sending the plans to the state for a stamp of approval.
“I’m just surprised that it’s being done after the fact and not before the fact,” he said, speaking at a joint meeting between the school board and City Council last month.
Pinheiro, along with several trustees, worried that Eliot’s neighbors would have problems with plans to have busses enter and exit the campus.
Superintendent Edwin Diaz assured trustees that, if community members have concerns about the bus turnaround and parent pick-up and drop-off areas, the district can make changes to those plans without re-submitting them to the state. Three busses will stop at Eliot each morning and again in the afternoon.
