Board Receives Facilities Master Planning Report from 21CFPC

In a special meeting on September 29, 2011, the Mercer Island School Board received a comprehensive report from the 20-member facilities committee led by Kris Kelsay, comprised of parents and community members representing 13 island organizations including students from IMS and MIHS. The committee was supported by administrators Dean Mack and Tony Kuhn, and consultant Liz LeRoy.

The committee used the following criteria as they developed their set of options: solve immediate capacity issues; create a master plan for the next 50 years; and stay competitive, in terms of school-facility designs that incorporate leading or best-practices.

During the question and answer portion of the meeting, the board asked probing questions around the district’s current facilities related to seismic concerns; the relative size of optimal elementary schools; the possible acquisition of new property for a potential elementary school number 4; and the cost of rebuilding schools over the next 3-25 plus years, among other topics.

Board members and the superintendent praised the members of the committee for their thoughtful and careful development of a master plan for the Board’s consideration. The Board plans to begin studying selected issues in more depth before they develop a strategy and proposition or propositions to place before voters for consideration.

For a full report see the 21st Century Facility Planning Committee, Board Recommendation