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Middle school upgrade moves forward

Avani Nadkarni

Sumner Middle School Co-principal Steve Sjolund held a meeting on June 3 for parents, staff and neighbors to hear updates about the school modernization project. The verdict: Things are going smoothly and according to plan.

“We’re really excited about the schedule. We’re right on time and on budget,” said Lee Fenton, manager at BLRB Architects, the firm handling the project.

The new building, which will include an enhanced sixth grade wing, a higher roof and a rain garden to treat the storm water that runs out of the parking lot, is scheduled to be completed just in time for the 2011-2012 school year and will be the first major renovation for the school since 1987. The school was built in 1962 and changed from a junior high to a middle school in 2005.

This past fall, a group of staff, students and parents formed into the school's Ed Specs committee to brainstorm ideas for the new building and visited other middle schools had constructed.

“Our main concern was ‘How is it going to affect kids that will be there during construction?’” said Cindy Conlin, whose son is in sixth grade and will be attending the school during the construction, which begins this coming April.

During the construction, BLRB project architect Les Gerstmann said, the sixth graders will be housed in portables on the adjacent Maple Lawn Elementary campus, the seventh graders will take the sixth existing grade wing and the eighth graders will be taught in portables on the middle school campus.

“There will be requirements, the dust needs to be controlled,” Gerstmann said.

Neighbors, like Sumner City Councilmember Steve Allsop, were on hand with concerns about parking and traffic during the construction period. Gerstmann said he doesn’t expect a loss of parking during construction and he and Sjolund said that Maple Lawn Elementary is accessible to take some of the heat.

Sjolund did acknowledge, however, that his team is still looking for alternate options.

“It is something we still need to explore,” Sjolund said.

Overall, parents, staff and neighbors alike said the meeting was helpful in addressing their issues.

“I feel confident that my child will be taken care of through this construction,” Conlin said after the meeting. “I have no concerns about that now.”

Reach Reporter Avani Nadkarni at 253-841-2481 ext 314 or by e-mail at avani.nadkarni@puyallupherald.com.