Central Valley School District soon will begin more than $30 million in remodeling and expansion projects at three elementary schools and one additional building in the district.

District Superintendent Ben Small says construction will begin this month on a $15 million renovation and classroom addition to Sunrise Elementary, at 14603 E. 24th.

“Sunrise’s interior will be redesigned from an open concept, to match modern learning and safety standards,” he says. “This will be a full renovation of 53,600 square feet of space, with the addition of 22,000 square feet of classroom space.”

He says renovations will include updates to the heating and air conditioning systems, the addition of more parking, and the reconfiguration of parent and bus drop-off sites. 

“These measures will improve traffic patterns and create additional parking at the front of the school to make it more accessible to staff and visitors,” Small says.

Graham Construction & Management Inc., of Spokane, is the contractor for the project, which was designed by ALSC Architects PS, of Spokane. 

Small says students will be housed at the former University High School at 10304 E. Ninth during construction. The project is expected to be completed in August 2017.  

Another of the district’s renovation and expansion projects will be to Opportunity Elementary School, at 1109 S. Wilbur Road. 

 This project also is estimated at $15 million, and is set to begin construction this month, with an estimated completion date of December 2017.

Small says this renovation is slightly more complex than the Sunrise Elementary project, as it will take place in phases, with students remaining on the site throughout the project. 

However, it is comparable in size to the Sunrise Elementary project, including a full renovation of the existing 42,400 square feet of floor space in the school, and the addition of 30,100 square feet of classroom space. 

This project too will include upgrades to the heating and air conditioning, as well as electrical systems, and the current main entrance to the building will be moved from the west side to the south side. 

“Here, too, we’ll be reconfiguring the parent drop-off site and adding parking,” says Small. 

The parent drop-off site will be moved from its current site to an area slightly farther east along 12th Avenue, and a new bus drop-off will be added along South Union Road. 

WLK Joint Ventures, a Spokane-based partnership of Walker Construction Inc. and Leone & Keeble Inc. is serving as the general contractor and construction manager for the project, which was designed by ALSC Architects. 

Small says this month the district also started construction on a $1.24 million classroom addition to Summit School, at 13313 E. Broadway. 

The project’s contractor is National Native American Construction Inc., of Coeur d’Alene, and it was designed by Bernardo Willis Architects PC, of Spokane.

“That project will add 5,200 square feet of new classrooms to the north wing of the school,” says Small. “Four of those will be middle school classrooms, three will be general classrooms, and one additional room will be a science classroom.” 

Small says construction on the project is expected to be completed by winter break this year, with the addition ready to be occupied in January.

The district also is working on a smaller project that includes upgrades to the former Spokesman-Review building at 13208 E Sprague. Small says the district purchased the 7,300-square-foot building last spring and intends to use it for both its Able Learner and Virtual Learning programs starting this September. 

The Able Learner program is designed to provide additional, challenging experiences for children in the district who have been identified as intellectually talented. 

The district’s Virtual Learning program provides instructor-led online courses to students in grades 8 through 12.

 “While Opportunity Elementary is under construction, this building will host students from the Able Learner Program in grades K-5, as well as serving as a home base for the Central Valley Virtual Learning program,” says Small. 

Once construction at Opportunity Elementary is completed, the Able Learner Program will move back to that location, enabling the Virtual Learning Program to expand in the newly remodeled space. 

Small says the $333,000 remodeling project began last month and includes upgrades to the building’s sprinkler system, bathrooms, entrances, and exits to meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards. 

The contractor for the project is Blew’s Construction Inc. of Spokane Valley, and it was designed by ALSC Architects. 

Small says the project should be completed by the time school begins in September. 

Marla Nunberg Genther, director of communications for the district, says the current construction projects all are being funded through a $121.9 million bond measure that district voters approved last year, along with matching state funds. 

Nunberg Genther says the district also recently was awarded a $21 million new class size reduction grant through the state which it intends to use toward a new Liberty Creek K-2 Elementary School, currently under construction in Liberty Lake.