Detroit to Invest $1 Billion in Schools

DETROIT — Detroit Public Schools is kicking off a $500 million, three-year capital improvement campaign with three construction and renovation projects totaling $64.1 million. As part of the capital improvement plan, the DPS will close dozens of schools district-wide and consolidate other facilities to reflect the city’s shrinking enrollment. Construction on the school projects is expected to start this summer.

 

The projects include a $45.3 million replacement to Martin Luther King High School. The new building will have a cyber café and media center and will connect to the current school’s auditorium and performing arts center, both of which will be remodeled. When complete by September 2011, the high school will house a new varsity gymnasium and a 10-lane swimming pool. MLK students will attend classes in the existing facility throughout construction; once students are relocated, the old building will be demolished. Jenkins Construction Inc. of Detroit was hired as the general contractor for the project.

 

The K-12 John R. King Academic and Performing Arts Academy and the PK-8 Garvey Academy will both receive major renovations that will be completed over the summer. Both buildings are expected to reopen before the fall 2010 semester begins.

 

The $10.2 million John R. King project includes building a black box theatre and upgrading the school’s technology, science laboratories, security offices, and building systems. At Garvey Academy, $8.6 million will be used to improve building infrastructure in the school’s academic areas. The centerpiece of improvements to Garvey will be the addition of the Harambee Centre, which is slated to become a new gathering space for the school’s African culturally-centered curriculum. White Construction Company and Dumas Concepts in Building, both of Detroit, were awarded contracts for John R. King and Garvey academies, respectively.

 

School officials expect the first of the three projects to employ around 1,375 area residents. All three general contractors agreed to hire 40-60-percent Detroit-headquartered subcontractors.

 

Detroit voters’ approval of the Proposal S Bond Referendum last November enabled the district to access $500.5 million in interest-free bonds through the Build America Bond program, a part of the federal stimulus package. Federal regulations stipulate the bond monies must be spent within three years.

 

The $500.5 million investment represents phase one of the DPS’s master facilities plan, which includes $25 million for upgrades at Denby High School, a new Crockett High School, and a $55 million replacement for Mumford High School. Another $20.6 million will be invested into improvements at Ford High School. Detroit’s Central High School will be rebranded as the Central Collegiate Academy PK-20 campus, a post-secondary school, as part of phase one, and other school improvements will take place throughout the city.

 

Phase two involves investing $500 million into further improvements at Detroit public schools, scheduled for completion by 2015.

 

For phase one, district officials expect $315 million to support new construction, $165 million to go towards renovations, and nearly $20 million used to decommission and demolish vacant and unneeded schools. Earlier this year, demolition crews tore down 10 vacant school buildings in Detroit.