,.- New Haven School Construction Program Mayor John DeStefano, Jr. Dr . Reginald R. Mayo , Superintendent of Schools ~~L - - Table of Contents Message From the Mayor I. Program Chronology, 1994 to 1996 II . Demographic Study Ill. Comprehensive Facility Report IV. Project Participants, Process & Management - V. The Projects VI. Project Schedule VII. Communications VIII. News Clippings - - - Message from - John DeStefano, Jr., Mayor As President Clinton and the federal - government begin to press for mas­ sive school construction programs s the country, the City of New - Haven has already initiated an aggres- -..ol!'"._._~-""!"'-~ sive school construction program. Today, the Citywide School Construction program stands as a national model for its massive scope, innovative financing and high degree of community involvement. - The School Construction program was launched in 1995 as a mechanism by which the City could repair its aging school ...... infrastructure while marginalizing the expense to taxpayers . To date, as a result of this innovative program and with no federal assistance, the City has commitments of $406.5 million toward the renovation or replacement of schools. An additional $295 million is planned to renovate an additional 21 schools over the next 10 years. The program includes both new and "gut-renovation" school projects. The General Accounting Office recently reported that one­ third of the nation's schools need extensive repair or replacement. In New Haven, a survey found that of the City's 42 city owned school buildings, 41 percent are at - least 50 years old . New Haven is moving aggressively to solve its problems while many municipalities are just com­ ing to grips with the extent of deterioration in neighborhood - schools built decades ago. - ,_jo. - Traditionally, cities fund school construction projects by issuing bonds. By using a comprehensive survey to invento­ ry the scope of repairs needed, New Haven officials quickly understood that the City could not issue enough bonds to - fix up its schools, given the city's other capital demands and its need to limit debt service. A high number of delinquent tax accounts accruing in the early 1990s created the City's opportunity to market it's delinquent tax debts. In the fall of 1995, a company pur­ - chased the liens and the City used the proceeds to begin the School Construction Trust Fund, funded initially by the lien proceeds. Since then , state School Construction grants and surplus city funds have been committed to the Fund. The most impressive benefit of the program is the citywide involvement of decision-makers. Each of the projects is guided by school-based planning teams of parents, teach­ - ers, staff and legislators. The process allows each commu­ nity to rally around a vision for the school - its educational program, facilities, the play spaces and recreational areas. Stakeholders learn to make difficult decisions. Their deci­ sions are translated into designs and presented to the Citywide School Building Committee and then to the Board - of Education for approval. The School Construction program is a model for the federal government, in using master plan­ ning, demographic and facilities' studies as a blueprint for comprehensive school construction efforts. -· "" ...... - I. Program Chronology, 1994 to 1999 -. - -" -- The School Construction Program was launched by Mayor John DeStefano, Jr. to address the facility needs of New Haven's public schools. I. Program Chronology 1994 to 1999 October----------- 1994: City Initiates a Facilities Condition Analysis for each school. The study quantifies, itemizes and assigns priorities to the needs of 42 public schools in the district. The study identifies approximately $82.1 million in needed building and fire code school facility improvements . June---.. 1995:...... --=--=---= Mayor DeStefano proposes broad initiative to rebuild city schools. The Mayor and Superintendent of Schools appoint a Citywide School Building Committee to develop a comprehensive school construction program initiative. Fall-------- of---~------._.-- 1995: A company purchases------- $15·- million in delinquent tax liens and the city uses the proceeds to begin the school construction trust fund. November-------------- 1995: The City establishes--- a Citywide School Construction office. Winter-----------~- 1996: A two-part planning ----retreat is facilitated·-- by GoodWork Associates, a local organizational development consulting firm, with a cross-section of educators to discuss the mission of the public schools and the vision for the future. March------------------- 1996: The City retains Jeter------, Cook & Jepson Architects Inc. to draft a comprehensive facilities plan for new school construction and major renovation projects (attached in this publication). This Comprehensive Facilities Master Plan provides a 10-year master plan and prioritization for all major facilities improvements to public schools. --------·------- Spring-------- 1996: The City lobbies for successful change in---- state law, acknowledging that siting new schools can be difficult and less cost effective than renovations. The change in the law increased projects eligible for reimbursement and increased the reimbursement rate for city schools. May------------------- 1996: The City's Board of Aldermen approves an -----ordinance·----- creating a school construction Trust Fund as a separate City fund. The Board also established a Citywide School Building Committee that will oversee all construction projects with------------------- the Mayor serving as Chair. (See Appendix A for ordinance) Summer-------- 1996: H.C. Planning Associates, in conjunction------- with Planimetrics, Inc. completes a report projecting student enrollments citywide for ten years and on a school by school basis for 5 years. Spring---------------------------- 1997: Jeter, Cook and GoodWork Associates develop--------- and implement the Community Education Plan, a blueprint to---------------------- involve citizens in the planning of school construction. March-------- 1998: The City hired Gilbane Building Company-------- to staff the Citywide School Construction Office and- to oversee all project planning, design and construction. Currently:------------------------------- Each year the City adds schools to its requests-------- for State School Construction Grants, following -- recommendations of the Master Plan. ....... - II . Demographic Study - - - In 1996, the Citywide School Construction Committee commissioned a comprehensive projection of student enrollment. The study was performed jointly by H.C. Planning Consultants, Inc. of Orange and Planimetrics, LLP of Avon and provided the foundation for renovation and new construction prioritization. \ NEW HAVEN PUBLIC SCHOOLS ENROLLMENT PROJECTIONS 1996-2000 Prepared For The New Haven Board of Education June 1996 Overall enrollment ••• Introduction in the New Ha ven ••• ••• This report su mmarizes 1996-2005 enrollment projections for the New school system is Haven school system . The enroll ment projections were prepared jointly by H.C. projected to Planning Consu ltants, Inc . of Orange and Planimetri cs, LLP of Avon. remain fairly The projections estimate the number of students that will attend New Ha ven stable over the public sc hools during the next ten years. The estimates are based on past trends next ten years. (enrollment patterns, birth rates , housing changes) and reasonable ex pectations of future co nditions (birth rates, migration rates, and the economy). The projections are the first phase of a Facilities Planning Study being conducted for the New Haven Board of Education by Jeter, Cook & Jepson, Architects, Lnc . of Hartford. Subsequent phases of the study will evaluate the physical co nditi ons and capacities of New Haven's school buildings and recommend a master plan for renovation and new construction. Ill Overall Enrollment Projections ••• Overall enrollment in the New Haven sc hool system (K-12 plus special programs) is projected to remain fairly stable over th e ne xt ten yea rs. In fact , considering both the high and low range. enrollments are expected to be within three Overall percent (3%) of current enroll ments. Year Enrollment History 1985 16,875 19 86 16,979 New Haven Enrollment History and Projections 1985-2005 1987 16,786 1988 17,152 1989 17,974 1990 18,169 20,000 ,.------------------------------- 1991 18,310 1992 18,418 16,000 +--------, 1993 18,693 1994 18,848 1995 19,114 16,000 Projection 14,000 Low Hiqh 1996 19 ,136 19,229 12,000 1997 19,127 19,298 1998 18 ,97 1 19,472 1999 18,930 19,202 10,000 2000 18,912 19,188 2001 18,872 19,261 6,000 2002 18,840 19,108 2003 18,786 18,849 2004 18 ,719 18,768 6,000 2005 18,616 18,716 • Actual . High Dlow 4,000 Overall enrollment includes K-12, Pre­ 2,000 K. Head Start, Special Education, Homebound and Outplacement. 0 ~ ~ ~ 00 m 0 ~ N M ~ ~ W ~ 00 m 0 ~ N M ~ ~ oo oo oo oo oo m m m m m m m m m m o o o o o o m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m o o o o o o ~ N N N N N N Year 2 Ill Enrollment Projections By Grade Group & Program The magnet school and open enroll­ ••• While the magnet school and open enroll ment features of the New Haven school system make school-by-sc hool projections less meaningful, projections by ment f eatures of grade group provide important insig ht into projected enrollment trends. the New Haven Enroll ment in grades K-4 are projected to peak in the next year or so (d ue to school system more births from 1985 to 1989) and then decrease. Middle school enrollments