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Updates
Bricks for Baseball
 Thank You to the MTA Community for Contributions to the New Baseball Field: These bricks represent the
tremendous enthusiasm and
support of the Mt. Ararat
community. |
New School
The new Mt. Ararat High School facility is ready for students and staff to occupy. As with any project of this size, there are punch lists and other elements of the project that are still being finalized. A majority of the furnishings have been delivered so we are in good shape to start the year. COVID-19 will require us to hold off on opening the building to the public but it is our hope to provide some opportunities for tours in October. With the school building coming to completion, we will be shifting our attention to the third phase of the project which is the competition field. The competition field will be built on the site of the former Mt. Ararat High School building. The process for taking down the former Mt. Ararat High School building is well underway and the demolition is expected to be completed in October. At this time we do not anticipate that the demolition of the former high school will impact traffic patterns and such, but if there is a need to close down the road to the middle school and district office at some point when the walls do come down you will be notified. For drone footage, updates, and other information associated with the high school construction project, please visit any of our school or district websites and look for the following icon:  Each month after the Building Committee meets, the Communications Subcommittee convenes to provide updates which are all posted on the MTA Construction website. If any of you are interested in financially contributing to the project, information about the various fundraising initiatives are posted on this website. It is the generosity and caring of the members of M.S.A.D. No. 75 community that has made this new high school and the associated fields on our campus a reality. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Though at this time we are limiting access to the building due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is our goal to do a ribbon cutting and offer opportunities for tours after we get the school year up and running. More details to come, but meanwhile, please know we are looking forward to welcoming members of our community at some point and sharing the amazing facility that you have helped us create that will enhance teaching and learning for our children and community members for years to come. Again, thank you. |
Traffic Patterns, Parking, & Student Drop-off
The roadways at the front of the school are all one way. The map below shows traffic patterns and parking. Traffic entering the roadways at the front of the school is one way. The parent drop off is no longer in the student parking lot, though some of you may still choose to use that location. Instead, there is a dedicated parent drop off lane that runs next to the bus lane between the main entry of the building and the staff parking lot. There are some parking spaces on this lane so parents can get out of the road to drop their children off. If you are planning to drop your child(ren) off for school, please note the parent drop off lane in the drawing above. For the first week of school, we will plan for staff to help point you in the right direction when you arrive for the first time.  |
The Transition to the New High School
As construction of the new High School nears completion the District’s construction team is moving to a new phase in the project, planning for the fit-up of the new High School. This includes the physical move of furniture, equipment, books and supplies and outfitting the new High School with new furniture and technology. The physical move between the two high schools will begin the day after the last day of school, and will happen quickly so demolition of the current school can begin. The District is now in the process of soliciting proposals from commercial moving companies. Most of the existing furniture will be replaced with new furniture, similar to other school construction projects (such as Bowdoin Central and the Middle School). Plans are being made to provide opportunities to reuse existing furniture by making it available first to other schools in the District, then to our town governments and libraries, and then to our community at-large through a community “yard sale”. The District is also exploring options for recycling student and staff tables and chairs to reuse the metal content of this furniture. Committees for both technology and furniture selection have been busy over the last year, working closely with consultants, students, staff and the Building Committee in exploring products and testing samples. The planning for new furniture and equipment is largely complete, and requests for competitive proposals and pricing are either complete or in process. The installation of new technology and the telephone system will begin in June, and the installation of new furniture is scheduled to take place between July 6th and July 13th. Other activities will be taking place in the new School over the summer as well. Three different pieces of art commissioned through the Percent for Art program and a dedication wall will be installed. (You can see one of the pieces of art – a mural to be hung in the cafeteria – on the construction page of our website.) Installation of solar panels on the roof will begin in the late spring and extend into the summer months. The new High School will indeed be a busy place over the summer as excitement grows for the opening of the new Mt. Ararat High School in September. |
Final Planning to Begin Demolition
Final plans are taking shape to begin demolition of the existing High School in July of 2020. The last major piece of the planning process fell into place with the bidding and award of a contract to EnviroVantage for abatement of PCBs and exterior asbestos mastic found on the foundation, at a cost of $759,195. This cost falls within allowances already included in the budget. The Board of Directors will be asked to approve a contract with EnviroVantage in March. Abatement of interior asbestos is already included in the general construction contract with Arthur C. Dudley. The presence of PCBs and asbestos are currently contained within or by building materials, and so they pose no hazard to building occupants. The District has always been careful to meet federal and state requirements to maintain a safe building and environment. These materials are commonly found in schools and other buildings built at the time of the High School (1973). However, once the demolition process begins the building must be disassembled in a careful manner to meet requirements for worker and environmental safety as the roof and walls are taken down. Materials contaminated by PCB or asbestos also require special transportation to landfills that are licensed to accept this material. During the demolition process an independent environmental consultant will be on site to assure a safe process is maintained, and the contractors follow the plan for demolition approved by the federal Environmental Protection Agency. Demolition will begin as soon as possible after the end of the school year to maintain the schedule for construction of the new competition athletic field in the same location. |
MTA Staff Visits - Construction Project - December 2019
In December 2019, groups of MTA staff had an opportunity to tour the new high school construction site for the first time. Given that this is a construction site, tours needed to be limited to 15 people and access to some areas was limited based on work in progress. The visits generated a lot of excitement as visitors took note of the wood featured in the entry halls, natural light, classroom features, office set ups, and so much more. The looks on their faces in the group photos tells it all.  Back L-R: Bob Durant, Aurora Manzanero, Rob Messier, Jessica Belanger, Gillian Watt, Lou Dorogi, and Jason Prince Front L-R: Donna Brunette, Pam Justice, Alison Pols, Bree Candland, Jodi Crawford, and Evelyn Barbour Back L-R: Matthew Cook, Geoff Godo, Tyler King, Dan Gibson, Nick Innis, Doug Ware, Sarah Cowperthwaite, and Sewall Janeway Front L-R: Paul Guerette, Courtney Calderwood, Hilary Martin, Jessica Graham, Dennis Edmondson, Suzie Brawn, Donna Brunette, Michelle Reed, and Christine Delrossi Back L-R: Lianna Fenimore, Donna Brunette, Deron Sharp, Ben Cox, Peggy Callahan, Courtney Reichert, Jen Green, Adam C (tour guide), Lisa Walker, Brooke Cox Front L-R: Dorothy Bradford, Donna Brunette, Kristen Thomas, Julie Petrie, Haven Fieldsend, Emily Vail, Kristi Thebeau-Holman, and Carmen Palmer |
Merrymeeting Bay Mural
 Merrymeeting Bay, a photograph of a mural by Richard Keen taken in the artist's studio. This work of art is commissioned under the Maine Percent for Art Act administered by the Maine Arts Commission. It will hang in the cafeteria of the new Mt. Ararat High School. |
Building a Sustainable High School
From the beginning our community has been consistent in its desire to build a new High School with sustainable features of energy efficiency, a small carbon footprint and a healthy indoor environment. The Board of Directors and Building Committee, working with CHA Architecture’s team of architects and engineers, have worked to assure sustainable features are designed and built into the new school, and the voters approved the additional local cost of these features. The Sustainability and Building Systems Subcommittee, composed of community members, continues to oversee these features in the construction process. The new School will be heated and cooled through a closed-loop geothermal system comprised of 96 deep water wells that will enable the School to take advantage of the consistent temperature of water deep below the ground to both heat and cool the school with less natural gas (for heating) and less electricity (for cooling). At the same time, the School will be highly energy efficient with a building envelope that includes additional roof insulation along with triple-glazed windows. The new school includes additional steel to bear the weight of solar panels across the entire roof. In the spring of 2019 the Sustainability Subcommittee began a competitive process to select a third-party vendor who will install the solar panels prior to the substantial completion of the building and produce solar energy beginning with the opening of school. Based on recommendations from the Sustainability Subcommittee and Building Committee, on October 10th the Board of Directors approved entering into a 25-year lease for the solar panels with Maine-based Revision Energy. There are no costs to the taxpayer for this lease, and the District will see annual savings in electricity of over $40,000 per year on average, or over $1,000,000 during the 25-year term of the lease. A solar energy “dashboard” located inside the school will provide students with real-time information on energy generation. There will also be a separate solar domestic hot-water heating system. Community feedback emphasized the importance of creating a healthy indoor environment conducive to learning. Plenty of sunlight will bathe the new classrooms and common areas. Large window-walls will light the cafeteria and Learning Commons. The architects have selected building materials with low VOCs (volatile organic compounds) to support good indoor air quality. A robust air-exchange system will assure there is plenty of fresh air in the building. Quality control is central to this project. Individuals from both the Department of Education and CHA Architecture, along with independent testing agencies hired by the School District constantly monitor the design and construction process. The project also includes a “commissioning” agent - a third-party engineering firm providing additional oversight into the design, construction and operation of the building to assure the outside envelope is water tight and energy efficient, and the heating and ventilation systems are built and perform to specifications from the first day of school. Construction continues on time and on budget, and we look forward to opening the new Mt. Ararat High School to those first tours for our four communities who have been unwavering in their support, and engaged in providing the time and feedback needed to construct a facility we can all be proud of. |
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