Lampasas Independent School District is still seeking survey responses from community members interested in being a part of the Facility Planning Committee or in providing input on facility needs. The deadline to respond is Monday.
Superintendent Dr. Chane Rascoe said more than 500 survey responses have been received so far. However, Rascoe added that LISD is hoping to get more responses from older residents and those with fewer ties to the school district.
“We are needing input from the community because it is technically their investment and [they] will be the ones paying for it,” he said.
At the LISD Board of Trustees regular meeting April 7, board members received a facilities review from WRA Architects. Lampasas Middle School was identified as the campus most in need of significant renovations, or perhaps a new building.
Rascoe said the Facility Planning Committee will work with the architectural firm and construction manager-at-risk to provide recommendations to school board members on facility needs in time for a potential bond election next spring.
“The ultimate decisions that will be made will come from this com-mittee,” Rascoe said. “They will evaluate the needs, and we are really counting on the community to take part in that.”
Of the survey responses the district has garnered so far, Rascoe said participants seem most concerned about the middle school.
“You think about the details that this committee is going to work through – where are we going to put the middle school? Well, that committee is going to be giving a recommendation on that,” the superintendent said. “Is it going to be at the high school? Where it is now? Is it going to keep Bozarth-Fowler Gym? All those things will be worked out with the committee.”
Lampasas Middle School has not been the only facility respondents are hoping to be addressed by the Facility Planning Committee, though.
“We are getting a lot of input for an activity center to incorporate band, soccer and all different activities,” Rascoe said. “We have had some mention for something for the fine arts program -- there have been a couple mentions of that. A lot of safety [concerns]. Fencing around each of the campuses has been mentioned on a couple of surveys.”
In their presentation to school board members, WRA Architects listed the district’s bus hub, Badger Field and the former middle school campus that now serves the DAEP program as additional facilities in need of renovations.
WRA’s Educational Planner Kelly Trompler told school board members and district officials the local facilities committee and architectural firm will work together with the district’s long-term interests in mind.
“We want them to think about a plan for five years, 10 years, 15 years and 20 years,” Trompler said. “Because not many school districts, if any, have the bond capacity, or maybe they don’t want to spend the bond capacity to do everything at once.”
Rascoe said the school district will work in future meetings to finalize the contract with WRA and the construction managerat- risk, which should be completed by September.
Facility Planning Committee meetings will take place from September through December.
In those meetings, committee members will learn of the facility deficiencies, receive demographic data and discuss bond capacity, before making recommendations to board members.
Residents interested in having a role on the Facility Planning Committee can fill out a survey at surveymonkey. com/r/ ZGYLPTN. The next regular meeting of the Lampasas school board is set for May 5 in the district’s administration building.
