MVLA School Board receives updates on Facilities Master Plan regarding upcoming construction

By Isabella Borkovic, Sports Editor

On Monday October 15, an architect from Quattrocchi Kwok Architects and a project manager from Kramer Project Development Co. Inc. updated the MVLA School Board with more detailed plans and deadlines regarding the seven-year Facilities Master Plan for the Mountain View and Los Altos High School campuses. Measure E, a $295 million bond that was passed on June 5, will fund this series of renovations, which includes cafeteria expansion, campus entry and site improvements, library modernization, and a new classrooms building, auxiliary gym and student services building.

The first part of the Facilities Master Plan is scheduled to begin in the winter of 2019 with the set-up of interim housing in a new set of portables that will sit along the empty asphalt lot to the west of the track. Preparations and sitework will begin in January 2019 and the new portables are likely to be delivered on campus by the end of March 2019.  Once finished, these buildings will act as temporary classrooms while the old portables at the back of the school are removed to make way for the construction of a new two-story classroom building and modernization efforts on the auxiliary gym.

The 600 wing is scheduled for demolition this spring as well, as the new two-story classroom building is also set to include improved Robotics and Culinary Arts facilities. Currently, the Culinary Arts and Robotics classes do not have set locations during construction. The district has yet to confirm final locations for all other programs in the 600 wing with the exception of auto-shop, which will not be offered as a class next year.

To give the construction crews working on the new classroom building and auxiliary gym enough space to store their materials and equipment, the athletic sheds and four tennis courts will be temporarily removed. The sports sheds will be relocated to the same asphalt area as the new portables. The area spanning from the entrance gate east of the tennis courts to the lockers on the east side of the school will be fenced off. Students will not be able to use the bike racks behind the large gym, enter the school from the fenced off entrance or use the lockers on the side of the school until construction is finished.

If all goes as planned, students will be moved into interim housing in the new set of portables before the end of the 2018-2019 school year. Both the new two-story classroom building and auxiliary gym are scheduled to be finished by the summer of 2020.