Bond Updates

Next Steps

24 March 2025 Update

We are entering the final stages of the design work. We have spent the past couple of months fine-tuning the plans. It won’t be long until we begin seeing construction taking place. Below is our tentative timeline regarding the bond construction timeline shared with us by Loyd Builders, our construction management firm.

The first project to break ground will be our parking lot shortly after the last day of school.

• The bid process for this is scheduled to start around March 17, with a tentative construction start date of May 27.
• The parking lot and new entrances are scheduled for completion for the start of school this fall.

During the scope of the new parking spaces is a new entrance to BHS off of 6th Street. This will not only allow us to divert traffic from the high school to the west side of the campus, but it will also allow us to re-route our traffic flow to provide a safer arrival and pick-up process. The traffic flow will be altered so that car-riding students will exit their cars on the passenger side, as opposed to the driver’s side.

The construction timeline for the new CTE facility will begin with the bid process starting around May 15.

• Construction of the CTE facility is tentatively scheduled to start around July 28.
• The goal is to work on the exterior edition during the 2025-2026 school year.
• During the summer of 2026, the completion of work to the interior/adjoining spaces is scheduled to occur.
• The goal is to have the facility completed by the start of the 2026-2027 school year.

Again, exciting times are about to begin. We cannot wait to see the work begin. Thank you for your continued support of our students, staff, and community.

7 February 2025 Update

We want to fill you in on what is our tentative timeline regarding the bond construction timeline shared with us by Loyd Builders, our construction management firm.

The first project to break ground will be our parking lot shortly after the last day of school. The bid process for this is scheduled to start around March 17, with a tentative construction start date of May 27. The parking lot and new entrances are scheduled for completion for the start of school this fall.

The construction timeline will begin with the bid process starting around May 15. Construction of the CTE facility is tentatively scheduled to start around July 28. The goal is to work on the exterior edition during the 2025-2026 school year. During the summer of 2026, the completion of work to the interior/adjoining spaces is scheduled to occur. The goal is to have the facility completed by the start of the 2026-2027 school year.

20 November 2024 Update

At the November 18, 2024, Regular Baldwin Board of Education meeting, our project’s architecture firm, The DLR Group presented an updated CTE design floor plan. This updated design was fueled by input from our Design Team focus group consisting of members from our staff, students, and community & industry leaders, while also giving consideration to staffing needs. Additionally, the design update was the result of the most recent one-on-one meetings with teachers and administrators, as we work to identify program priorities and cross-curricular collaboration opportunities. We intend to prioritize instructional space, while allowing for program expansion over time.

As a result, we have made an intentional decision to pivot away from our woods program and move towards enhancement of our Ag Science programming. Please know this was not an easy decision. This allows us to continue serving our students with interests in welding and manufacturing, while also expanding learning opportunities for automotive technology and repair (fuel-injected and diesel engines). The decision to expand our Ag Science programming will allow the district to hire a second Ag Science teacher to start with the district in the 2026-2027 school year.

These decisions have allowed us to impact 7 programs, whereas the initial plan only impacted 4. The seven programs located in the new CTE facility will be:

1. Agriculture Science, Agriculture Technology, and Automotive (Plant Science, Animal Science, Welding, and Automotive)
2. Culinary
3. Health Sciences
4. Business
5. Computer Science
6. Drafting
7. Graphic Design

Even with these changes, we are still working within the budget. By increasing the number of instructional spaces in the new CTE facility, we will be creating much-needed space in the high school, as three classrooms will be made available. In the coming weeks, The DLR Group will provide us with updated imagery that will help bring this new space to life.

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1st Quarter Newsletter 2024 Update

“When will construction begin?” That’s a common question we’ve heard as we embark on the community’s bond projects in our schools.

I wanted to provide you with an update on where we are in the design and construction process, and what we’re looking forward to.

The first step is completion of the design process to ensure the draft design plan meets the current and long-term needs of our students and our teachers. Once we complete this part of the process, construction is targeted to begin in late spring-early summer of 2025.

Since June, we have been working with our architecture firm, DLR Group, to host a series of design planning meetings with a feedback group. This group is made up of students, teachers, staff, community members and local employers. Their feedback has helped us fine tune the design work and narrow the scope down to the classroom level. The end result will be an efficient and adaptable facility that will allow the district to update and scale our Career & Technical Education programs over time as workforce needs and demand evolve.

From these design planning meetings, the immediate feedback we’ve received has identified a need and desire to maximize instructional space. This feedback has allowed us to better utilize some of the collaboration space and convert that into instructional space so that two of our business classrooms can be incorporated into the new CTE facility. This creates an exciting opportunity – identified by our teachers – for cross-program partnerships to occur. This also frees up two classrooms inside the existing high school to provide additional instructional space for our core academics.

Over the next several months more planning meetings will take place to ensure we deliver well-planned improvements that will serve our community for years to come.

Thank you again for your commitment to our students, teachers and school community. We are very excited about the learning opportunities and much-needed safety improvements that will come from your support and passage of the USD 348 bond project. I look forward to keeping you updated throughout the design and construction process.

Site Plans & Construction Maps

Site Plan for Parking Lot and CTE Building

Building Plans for the proposed new CTE building

Satellite-view image of the proposed CTE building in relation to our current secondary schools campus.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is a school bond issue?

A bond is a state-approved funding process for a set scope of projects. When voters approve a bond, the school district sells bonds in the authorized amount and uses the proceeds of the sale to pay for those projects in the bond. In many ways, the bonding process is like a homeowner obtaining a mortgage and making payments over a period of years. School bond elections require a simple majority to pass (50 percent plus one).

When will construction begin?

Early Summer 2025

When will construction be completed?

The new CTE building is on track to open in time for the 2026-27 School Year

Which project will begin first?

The parking lot improvements will begin at the conclusion of the Spring 2025 semester, and exterior construction on CTE building will begin later in the summer.

Rendering