Hannafin Designs
What now resembles a "litter box" will soon become a thriving community complex, complete with alternative energy production and a greenhouse, according to school district officials.
Eagle Valley Middle School sits on 39 acres but uses only 12, said Bob Anderson, finance director for the Carson City School District.
He will announce plans during Tuesday's school board meeting to build a $4.5 million community complex at the middle school featuring a bus barn that will serve double duty as a generator of clean energy. Plans also include a greenhouse, a regulation baseball field, improvements to the track, a new traffic entrance and other improvements including biking and walking trails throughout.
Changes should be complete, Anderson said, by the 2011 school year.
A public meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday in the middle school library to introduce the idea to parents and neighbors.
"This is all good news for everybody," he said. "I believe this complex is not only cutting-edge technology, but it's going to improve the value of the homes in this area dramatically. More than 20 acres of this piece of property currently looks like a cat litter box."
The money for the project comes out of the capital projects fund, which can only be used for construction projects of $5,000 or more. It is separate from the operations fund, which pays for salaries and education programs.
Anderson said $1 million will come from federal stimulus money. The remaining $3.5 million will be paid for with medium-term bonds, which don't need to be approved by voters, to be paid off over the following nine years.
The components of the project include:
Alternative energy
The centerpiece of the development is a bus barn to house the school's nine buses. However, its true function will be to serve as the structure to produce enough natural energy to power the entire school.
Along the roof will be solar panels, and 39 wind turbines will be mounted atop pillars in the fencing. The district will apply for a special-use permit to add up to 250 turbines, Anderson said.
The energy produced, he said, should provide enough energy to power the school, eliminating the $120,000 annual energy bill there.
That money would go back into the operations budget.
Traffic flow
Perhaps the most noticeable change to neighboring residents will be the restructuring of entrances and exits. As it is now, all entrances and exits are along Fifth Street.
Under the new design, buses, parents and visitors will enter from Carson River Road. They will exit onto Fifth Street. Employees will continue using the entrance and exit along Fifth Street.
"We're trying to expedite and clear up all the traffic for people living there," Anderson said. "We're taking all that diesel and all that noise and moving them over to the unpopulated side of Carson River Road."
Greenhouse
In the northwest corner of the lot, the city's Greenhouse Action Committee, headed by Karen Abowd, will construct a greenhouse with a hydroponic garden and demonstration center.
The construction of the greenhouse, Abowd said, will be donated by the Builders Association of Western Nevada.
A special-education teacher will oversee operations in the greenhouse, working with about 15 or 16 students learning life skills.
Plants, trees and shrubs grown there will be used in landscaping the site. Food grown there will be donated to service organizations such as FISH, Abowd said.
Public gardening demonstrations can be held during the summer, and a shallow pond will serve to recycle water for the greenhouse.
Fields and parking
A regulation baseball field will replace the deteriorating field in the northeast corner and improvements are also planned to the track and field in the southwest corner.
Both will be maintained by the city and open to the public.
Stairs will also be installed connecting the school to the track so it can be better utilized for physical education classes and by students.
Parking and bathrooms will be added near the track as well.
Other
In addition to an improved track and field, which will also serve as a soccer field, running and biking trails will be extended throughout the complex.
Bike racks will be installed where students now just pile their bikes, Anderson said, and sidewalks will be laid to help students and community members travel from place to place.
The bus yard will also house the district's maintenance and cabinetry shops.
The school district and city are considering combining adjoining property on the southeast corner for a park, likely one with few amenities or improvements.
At the heart of all of the development, however, is education.
"Every piece of this has an educational component," Anderson said.
He said staff will use next year to develop a curriculum that will incorporate the technology being used on the campus, particularly the wind and solar energy projects.
"There are a ton of synergistic educational components to this project," he said. "Unlimited."