The Mill Valley School District board has approved contracts bond construction projects at district schools.
The trustees voted 5-0 on Thursday in favor of a $199,000 contract with Flint Builders of Roseville for pre-construction services at Mill Valley Middle School. The district plans a new complex in the same location at 425 Sycamore Ave.
“Safety is such a big deal,” Nathan Stiles, a Flint project manager, told trustees at their meeting. “Without safety, everything stops.”
The district has earmarked the bulk of a $194 million, voter-approved Measure G bond issue for the new middle school, which is expected to take about three years to build amid a raft of environmental reviews.
The school was built in the 1970s on a closed and capped former household waste landfill and burn pit — a detail that has generated a high level of concern from district officials, parents and the community.
About 140 people, both in person and online, attended the second Measure G community forum on Oct. 25, said Abraham Vallin, a contract community engagement coordinator.
The district has posted video of the two forums at mvschools.org. A third forum is set for 5 p.m. Monday at the middle school.
“This has been a super-impressive and equitable process,” said trustee Natalie Katz. “People are appreciating the transparency and being able to ask questions.”
Trustees also unanimously approved a $15,000 contract with Ninyo and Moore, a geotechnical and environmental consulting firm, to begin preliminary environmental studies at the middle school.
“We’ve engaged this consultant to do an assessment,” Julio Arroyo, the district’s operations director, told trustees. “We will have more information on that for you next month.”
The trustees also approved a third vendor, GCCI Inc. of Santa Rosa, for a $25,000 pre-construction services contract for modernization work at the district’s five elementary schools: Old Mill, Strawberry Point, Edna Maguire, Tam Valley and Park.
The trustees heard a preliminary report on conceptual plans for interim accommodations for the middle school students during the three-year construction process. The district has not decided on a site. Cyd Amaral, spokesperson for the district, said it expects to approve arrangements in the first quarter of next year.
Laura Knauss, principal architect with the Lionakis firm, told trustees the plan involves a “village” of about 27 or 28 portable classrooms, plus an administration building and a library. Knauss said tall fences with blankets would be installed to muffle noise.
As for abating persistent odors from the adjacent sewage plant, Knauss said it would depend on where the interim buildings are placed. If the portables are built at the current site, outdoor smell mitigation would be difficult.
“We can do a lot with ventilation inside, but if the students are circulating outside between classes, there isn’t a lot we can do,” she said.
Knauss said the district is hoping to set up parking agreements with nearby sites such as the Mill Valley Community Center.
The district is expected to engage in a range of environmental reviews in upcoming months. Those studies are to comply with the California Environmental Quality Act, the state Department of Toxic Substances Control, the California Division of the State Architect and the California Department of Education.
“Updates on the environmental studies and pre-construction services will be provided to the board in upcoming meetings,” Amaral said.
The district said it expects to award contracts for environmental, hazardous materials and soil studies beginning in March.
