WIESBADEN, Germany Aca,!" An upsurge in Department of Defense school projects in Europe will bring almost $300 million in renovations and construction over the next four years, up from $15 million in fiscal year 2009.
Major upcoming projects the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Europe District will oversee for the Department of Defense Dependents Schools-Europe include a new high school in Kaiserslautern, new elementary and high schools at BAfAPblingen, and new elementary, middle and high schools at SHAPE.
In addition to the new facilities for DoDDS at SHAPE, discussions are underway between the District and representative of eight other NATO nations with students in the SHAPE International School to construct additional facilities on a new school campus.
The huge increase stems from the old buildings with aging infrastructure building systems beyond their normal life cycle many of the schools are housed in, said Jose Tovar, DoDDS-E Facilities Branch chief.
Aca,!A"A prioritized plan is being developed that would replace many of these old schools that are functionally inadequate as well as having building systems in poor condition,Aca,!A? he said. Aca,!A"The replacement of these old schools will result in new facilities that will meet the current educational facilities specifications and give our students better learning environments.Aca,!A?
In Wiesbaden, a $5 million multipurpose room that will provide a new stage and full-service kitchen for the elementary and middle schools is under construction and scheduled to be complete in summer 2010.
Meanwhile the Wiesbaden High School is getting an overhaul that will provide students with a new gymnasium, multipurpose room with kitchen, science labs, music and art rooms, JRTOC area, video production and culinary arts classrooms Aca,!" altogether a little over $15 million venture expected to finish up in 2012.
The Kaiserslautern military community will see a much bigger transformation. A new $74 million high school, scheduled to begin construction in 2010, will provide students with a wide variety of new educational programs, said Kelley Grant, the DistrictAca,!a,,cs project manager.
Aca,!A"In addition to new classroom and administrative space, the project gives the school a new auditorium, a music suite dedicated for band and choral, several new technology and chemistry labs, a dedicated JROTC area, a culinary arts room, and even a TV production and editing lab,Aca,!A? she said.
And when combined with a $19.3 million stadium and multipurpose room that is expected to have the capacity to hold Europe-wide events, the Vogelweh community is hoping to attract more student activities and competitions through the military community, Grant said.
And the heavily wooded BAfAPblingen Training Area near Stuttgart will see new elementary and high schools planned to house roughly 540 students and 620 students respectively.
Aca,!A"Right now, the elementary school is housed in a building that was originally a German Army Barracks in the 1930s,Aca,!A? said Steve Umbrell, the DistrictAca,!a,,cs project manager. Aca,!A"As for the high school, because there is no sports field and inadequate classroom space, the students have to compete for space with the military.Aca,!A?
Outside of Germany, the Corps has two other large projects in the works.
Near Harrogate in North Yorkshire, England, District planners conducted a feasibility study with DoDDS on plans to upgrade school facilities for the Royal Air Force Station Menwith Hill. The school currently has 272 students and expects to enroll roughly 360 in the future with upcoming housing projects, said Philip Cohen, the DistrictAca,!a,,cs Planning Section chief.
The study included options ranging from renovating the current facilities to constructing new facilities in an undeveloped area, Cohen said. The cost would range from $45 million to $54 million.
And at Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe near Mons, Belgium, blueprints are being worked for elementary, middle and high school projects that, when constructed, could total over $100 million.
Their proximity to the SHAPE International School, which is itself planning about $40 million in upgrades, have brought up discussions on how best to integrate elements of the international school upgrades into the project, Umbrell said.
Roughly 2,200 students from 38 nations attend the existing SHAPE International School, according to the schoolAca,!a,,cs Web site. So far, countries that have expressed interest in funding this venture include Canada, the UK, Norway, Turkey, Italy, Poland, Germany and Belgium, Umbrell said.
Aca,!A"We are working with DoDDS and the whole international team to ensure everyone gets what they need and at the best value for their money Aca,!" for what they have and what they need,Aca,!A? he said.
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