Dixon Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee Visits John Knight Project

DIXON, CA (MPG) - On Thursday morning, May 7th, School Superintendent, Brian Dolan, hosted a tour of the John Knight Middle School construction site to update selected members of the Dixon Unified School District governing board, Luke Foster and Melissa Maseda, and the chair of the Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee (CBOC), Tad Smith.  The visit was kept to a minimum of people, in light of the current COVID-19 pandemic. 

Overshadowing this visit was the sad reality that the expected school opening date had been delayed from August 2020 to January 2021.  The District notified the CBOC and the community of the schedule change with a press release and a set of FAQs on April 22.  At the last CBOC meeting in February, everything seemed to be on track, but Leigh Coop from School Site Solutions representing the construction management firm, always reminded everyone this was going to be a tight deadline and renovations of old buildings have a habit of producing unpleasant surprises. 

The surprises were not unexpected, but required time and money to solve.  For example, a major rebuilding of the foundation at the main entrance to the school was required to meet modern earthquake standards.  The installation of a required firewall was hampered by original construction associated with a long-gone theater.  The corroded water line mains have been replaced.  The construction on these issues is complete; most people will never be aware of the time, effort, and expense involved in these infrastructure upgrades.

Other delays were triggered by the need for significant roof repair on most of the school buildings, in addition to the planned need to perform a complete reroofing of A-wing, using a metal roof having a color similar to the old tile roof.  The major kitchen upgrade and window replacement jobs will go out to bid in June.  The new windows will be installed before the start of the rainy season in the fall.  Once the windows are complete, the appearance of the school will visibly reflect the construction progress.

The tour highlighted a construction site buzzing with activity.  Every wing was full of construction workers, now in full restoration mode.  During the last visit in September, it was just the opposite as the site was undergoing demolition.  Some of the workers made an effort to greet Superintendent Dolan, tangible evidence of his frequent visits to the site.  Fencing is being installed around parts of the school site to limit access.  A wellness center is being built near the future administration area.  The ramp from A to B wing has been upgraded to meet current building code.  The courtyard will look totally different, with a more open appearance.  Raised walls are installed around the trees in the courtyard, with slight surface modification to make potential skateboarders miserable.  The band room is almost complete, and Mr. Russo’s students will have to make some wonderful music to fill up that large area.  Most of the work in C wing is complete.

Some items are still being discussed:  What will happen to the old tennis courts?  How much landscaping should be done?  What type of area should be made available to students for eating lunch outside?  How should the student foot traffic be restricted to specific outside areas?  The answers will depend on available money toward the end of the middle school project and the recommendation of the School Board.  In addition, there will be change orders to upgrade an entrance path for emergency fire vehicles to meet code requirements to support the heavy firetrucks.

The requirement to install a new connection for two 6-inch water service pipes for a dedicated fire suppression system is still in the design stage by California Water Service, and the work will have to be performed this summer by the water utility.  Cal Water was brought into this discussion late in the process, and the expected cost was much higher than a rough early estimate by the contractor.  Cal Water partnered with the District’s contractor to find ways to reduce costs and agreed to prioritize the project to attempt to keep this item from delaying the school opening.  Of course, an occupancy permit for the school will not be issued without a functioning fire suppression system.

Perhaps in the pre-COVID era, construction could have been accelerated and students might have been able to start the school year at John Knight Middle School and simply avoid some limited construction areas.  The virus changed everything.  Parts of the supply chain have been disrupted, making it difficult to get custom construction items delivered in a timely manner.  For example, a requested color and texture of tile might not be available immediately, forcing a decision on using a substitute or waiting for the requested items.  Obtaining a full work crew has been challenging, particularly for roofers and painters, which may have been related to COVID-19 and the difficulty in social distancing on various worksites. 

Superintendent Dolan pointed out the challenge in attempting to move staff and supplies to the school during the summer, when the county may still be on lock-down.  There is no good scientific consensus to guide the planning for the COVID-19 situation in August.  Right now, no one can predict when school will start, what classes will look like with social distancing, how much learning will still be done at home, or how amendable kids will be to the expected no-contact policies.  What happens if kids pick up the virus in school and spread the disease at home?  All school districts are struggling with these complex issues, and administrators from nearby districts are in discussions with each other and state education leaders to develop new policies.

With the January opening, the District will have adequate time to prepare properly for the move.  This might include hosting some visits for staff and students in late fall to become familiar with the school.  At some point, there will be a community event to recognize the opening of the John Knight Middle School.  After all we have gone though this year, it will be nice to have the school as a source of pride for the community of Dixon. 

Other projects are still being planned with Measure Q funds.  On May 6, three members of the District, two from School Site Solutions, and the chair of the CBOC, participated in a five hour process of video interviewing four architect firms for the next phase of the Measure Q projects, this time focusing on renovation plans for Anderson and Tremont Elementary Schools.  Recommendations from the interviews will be discussed at a future school board meeting.

The next CBOC meeting is scheduled for May 20^th, at 6:30 pm using video conferencing on the Zoom platform. The main topic will be the review of the annual report to the community.  This item was scheduled for a March meeting, which was cancelled just as the “shelter-in-place” orders were issued.  A new member to the CBOC, Robert Sanchez, will be welcomed.  Leigh Coop from School Site Solutions is scheduled to provide an update on the budget issues, new timelines for the projects, selection of architects, and purchase of furniture.

The Dixon CBOC has held meetings in a public forum since May 2017.  Future meetings are scheduled for the third Wednesday of every odd-numbered month.  The CBOC members are confident the efforts of our committee and the District will give the community of Dixon a beautiful, historic, and modern middle school for our students, significant upgrades on the other schools, all while showing respect for the taxpayers.  There is one vacancy on the CBOC.  If interested in serving, the District can provide an application and background information.