A number of portable classrooms surround the school because the building is overcrowded - and has been since the 1980s. The land where those trailers sit would be the best place for the addition. However, there is no place near Hoover to move the portables during construction. Any level land is too far away, Pierce said. The district's Facilities Review Committee, which is chaired by businessman Doug Palmer, will start meeting in October to address the Hoover project.
Plans are on track for the design of the new northeast and westside grade schools.
The westside grade school will replace Emerson, built in 1921, and Roosevelt, built in 1920. The school will be built on a 13-acre tract in Woodbury Heights on land owned by the city. Hopefully, we can reach agreement in the next two months. Under the timetable, construction will begin in June 2000, with classes starting in the fall of 2002. School officials said they thought there would be some savings in construction costs if both schools could be bid together.