M.S.A.D. No. 75 is closing in on final square footage that will be approved by the State of Maine Department of Education for the high school project. Over the past several weeks, the District, the project architect, and DOE officials have been meeting to review space allocation programs for the proposed new high school. The space allocation and components approved by the State will be paid for by the State through the EPS (Essential Programs and Services) formula. Any additional footage of components above and beyond what the State approves must be paid for by local taxpayers and donations. The first space allocation was proposed as 209 square feet per student, then revised to 193 sq feet per student, and most recently revised to an allocation of 187 sq feet. At that figure, the building would be a total of 140,539 sq feet compared to the existing 156,500 sq feet. The current facility was designed for 1,100 students, and the new high school is using 750 students as a projected enrollment. At the most recent meeting with state officials, the project was scheduled to appear for site approval on the April agenda of the State Board of Education. Prior to that, the District will present the site selection and relevant information to a sub-committee of the State Board of Education. That meeting is set for April 1st. The Building Committee, M.S.A.D. No.75 Board of Directors and a straw poll held on January 21, 2016, all supported keeping the MTA High School project on our current campus! PDT, the architectural firm for the project, was also given the “green light” to begin working on the concept design. While final square footage has not been set, the concept design will be adjusted as necessary. This is an exciting step, as the project moves from “ideas” to drawings. These will lead the project toward concept approval, and a return to the State Board of Education. Throughout the project, the Building Committee, under John Hodge’s leadership, meets to review work. The six sub-committees (Building Systems, Sustainability, Communications. PE/Athletics, Technology/Learning Commons and Student Advisory) meet frequently. You can find updates by clicking on the MTA Construction News icon on any of the District’s or school webpages. |
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