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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The original Bluff Park School — built in the 1920s — sits ready for renovation work on Wednesday, March 10, 2021, five days after demolition work was completed on other buildings that had been built around the original facility over the years.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The original Bluff Park School — built in the 1920s — sits ready for renovation work on Wednesday, March 10, 2021, five days after demolition work was completed on other buildings that had been built around the original facility over the years.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The original Bluff Park School — built in the 1920s — sits ready for renovation work on Wednesday, March 10, 2021, five days after demolition work was completed on other buildings that had been built around the original facility over the years.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
210310_Old_Bluff_Park_School04
The original Bluff Park School — built in the 1920s — sits ready for renovation work on Wednesday, March 10, 2021, five days after demolition work was completed on other buildings that had been built around the original facility over the years.
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Photo by Jon Anderson
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The original Bluff Park School — built in the 1920s — sits ready for renovation work on Wednesday, March 10, 2021, five days after demolition work was completed on other buildings that had been built around the original facility over the years.
The demolition of part of the old Bluff Park School campus was officially deemed complete this past Friday, and contractors hope to begin renovation work next week on the original building that was preserved, a Hoover school official said Wednesday.
Complete Demolition tore down an old lunchroom and kitchen, a four-classroom addition on the left side of the main entrance, a two-story addition to the right of the main entrance that included the old library that for many years housed the records of the Hoover Historical Society, and a L-shaped group of classrooms in the back of campus.
The buildings were in poor condition and were not up to current city codes and would have cost too much to renovate, school officials determined.
Demolition work started in the fall and took a little longer than anticipated, but the end product looks good, said Matt Wilson, director of operations for the Hoover school system.
“The overall site is very attractive now,” Wilson said.
Photo courtesy of Robin Schultz/Bluff Park Drone
Old Bluff Park School 2016-2021
These images shot by Bluff Park Drone show the old Bluff Park School campus in 2016 (at top) and in 2021 (after demolition of several of the older buildings).
The building that remains is the oldest part of the school — built in the 1920s — and has two classrooms and two rooms most recently used as offices.
The school board in December hired Battle Miller Construction to perform a $1,012,800 renovation of that building, converting the facility for use by the school system’s student services personnel, who now are housed at Brock’s Gap Intermediate School.
Battle Miller Construction plans to erect construction fencing around the building this week and begin renovations next week, Wilson said. The work is expected to take about six months with completion targeted for late August, he said.
The Hoover school board also is contemplating adding 8-10 classrooms at the new Bluff Park Elementary School, which opened next door in 1993. That school is nearing capacity.
Such an addition is expected to cost roughly $4 million to $4.5 million, but no architect has been selected, Wilson said.
School officials had plans drawn up for an addition several years ago, but that design included relocating the school entrance so that it would face Park Avenue rather than the school driveway. School officials now are talking about leaving the entrance and main office where they are now, which would mean the scope of the addition would be less than previously designed, Wilson said.
The school board has taken no official action regarding approval for an addition.
2020 BUDGET SURPLUS
In other school system news, the school board this week heard a report from the school system’s auditors, who said Hoover City Schools ended fiscal 2020 with $7.1 million more in income than expenses.
When the school board originally passed the 2020 budget in September 2019, school officials anticipated spending $15 million more than they received in revenue, pulling from reserves to cover the difference. The expected expenditures included $19 million in capital projects, including an $8 million 18-classroom expansion at Berry Middle School.
However, school officials ended up delaying some of the capital projects, and other expenditures ended up being less than projected, partially due to the shutdown and reduction of school operations associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, auditor Andrew Waits said.
Hoover City Schools also had a $6 million increase in state and federal revenues, Waits said. However, a $1.5 million increase in federal revenues was offset by a $2.9 million increase in expenses associated with federal programs, he said.
The school board also on Monday agreed to pay Brian’s Flooring and Design $164,447 for various flooring projects throughout the school district. The contract with Brian’s Flooring and Design is good for three years and includes a 1% cost increase each of the two following years, said Michele McCay, the school district’s chief financial officer.
Interim Superintendent Tera Simmons reminded the public that anyone wanting permission to attend a Hoover school outside of their regular school attendance zone should submit their transfer request to the school district by April 15.
As of Monday night, the school district already had received transfer requests from 250 employees who live outside of the Hoover school district altogether, 100 employees who want their children to attend a school outside their regular Hoover school zone, 45 people applying for a transfer allowed by a federal desegregation ruling and 10 people applying for a transfer based on hardships, Simmons said.
Also, school board President Deanna Bamman informed the public that the school board continues to evaluate the five finalists the board interviewed for the vacant superintendent job last month.
“We are doing our due diligence and taking our time picking the right person for this position,” Bamman said.
She previously had said the board would like to have made a selection by March 1 and have a new superintendent in place by April 1, but she said all along the board would extend the timeframe if necessary. She said she appreciates everyone’s patience in waiting for a decision.
The five finalists interviewed were:
- Michael Barber, retired superintendent, Pell City Schools
- Autumm Jeter, Bessemer City Schools superintendent
- Bart Reeves, Satsuma City Schools superintendent
- Holly Sutherland, Haleyville City Schools superintendent
- Randy Wilkes, Phenix City Schools superintendent
