District 63 Mulls Construction at Concord Elementary

It’s been 10 years since did major facility improvements — and it’s time for an upgrade, Superintendent Kerry Foderaro said Tuesday.

The district hopes to focus its efforts on the preschool and kindergarten classrooms at . 

“Our facilities for early childhood education could use a shot in the arm,” Foderaro said during the District 63 board meeting. 

To help fund the project, which is still in the conceptual stage, Concord Principal Laura Anderson applied for a $2.4 million share of $45 million in grant money being distributed statewide for elementary school construction projects.

An architect developed three concepts for updating Concord’s preschool and kindergarten wing with estimates that range in price from $1.5 to $4.2 million.

If the school gets the entire amount of money it applied for, Anderson said the administration would like to add several more preschool classrooms and an activity area. 

This year there are seven students on the waitlist for Concord’s preschool. Ideally, the school would like to be able to accept all the three and four year olds whose parents want them to attend, Anderson said. 

“We’re trying not to turn students away,” she said. “We feel it’s more beneficial to students the earlier we get them.” 

Before pursuing any construction projects, Foderaro said the district would go through a bidding process. He stressed that the district wasn’t recommending any of the plans presented at Tuesday’s meeting but rather wanted to keep the board informed about what was being considered. 

He put the district’s chances of receiving the grant at 50-50. 

The grant wouldn’t be the only funding for district enhancements.

With interest rates at a low, Foderaro said District 63 can refinance some of its existing debt to recoup as much as $1.5 million to help fund the Concord construction as well as other projects around the district.

District 63’s wish list includes upgrades to fifth-grade science labs, improvements to the gyms at both schools, and updated music and art rooms. The schools also need some basic maintenance work such as painting and new carpeting. 

Board member Bill Carpenter said he thought the district was moving in the right direction.

“Your wish list is not just everything under the sky,” he said. “You’re basically addressing the needs of the district.”

Board President Mike Webster said he thought it looked like a good plan, but the district would need to re-evaluate some parts if it doesn’t get the grant. 

“Because of the grant opportunity that’s opened up (the Concord construction) is really something we need to explore,” he said. “But if we don’t get the grant, I think maybe this reinvestment of 100 percent of the refinancing into early childhood education may be shortsighted.” 

The state hasn’t released a timeline for when it will announce the grant recipients. Depending on when the district finds out if it gets a share of the money, Foderaro said it might be 2013 before construction is finished at Concord.

Even if the district doesn’t receive any of the funding, Foderaro said it could complete some projects, such as the science lab updates, as soon as next year.