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Sixth-grade teacher Kelly Polosky coaches Dajaun Hamilton with his iPad in early February at Kelly Elementary School in Wilkinsburg.
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Wilkinsburg School District to upgrade elementary schools

Bob Donaldson/Post-Gazette

Wilkinsburg School District to upgrade elementary schools

Wilkinsburg School District is undertaking a $10 million project to provide complete upgrades to its Turner and Kelly elementary schools.

The district has about $6.3 million in a capital improvements fund from a bond issue for the projects. The board is looking to take out an additional $3.5 million to $4 million loan in addition to the bond to cover the entire cost of the renovations.

The board is submitting the first of a series of documents outlining the renovation plans to the state Department of Education in hopes of receiving state reimbursement under the Planning and Construction Workbook, also known as PlanCon.

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“It wouldn’t be possible for us to complete this project without those reimbursements, so we’re really hoping they come through,” business manager Phil Martell said.

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Turner, built in 1936, needs the most extensive repairs, acting superintendent Dan Matsook said. It is the first building slated for renovation, including new windows; improved heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems; upgraded security systems; and improved handicap accessibility. Work is scheduled to begin in September and expected to be finished by August 2016.

Renovations to Kelly, which was built in 1969, are slated to run from May 2016 into September 2016. Neither building has seen an upgrade since the 1990s, Mr. Matsook said.

District officials are planning to host a series of community meetings at Turner and Kelly this spring to provide detailed plans of the renovations to parents and other district residents, board President Ed Donovan said.

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With the entire bond issue being used for the elementary buildings, the district will have to set aside future funds to provide touch-ups to the high school, Mr. Matsook said. No extensive renovations are scheduled for the 7-12 middle and high school building on Wallace Avenue. Built in 1910, it is the oldest of the district’s current schools.

"When you do renovations, it’s a 30-year decision,” Mr. Matsook said. “We really want to do it right and give our kids the same state-of-the-art technology and facilities that any other student in Allegheny County would have."

The board is planning a series of visits to buildings in other area school districts that recently underwent construction or extensive renovations, including Penn Hills, which opened a new K-6 elementary center in August.

“We need to go out and look at not just new construction, but to look at buildings like ours — old buildings — that were renovated and talk to teachers who use those rooms,” Mr. Donovan said. “To better understand what our architects and teachers are telling us they want to do, I think we need to go see it.”

Helena Wilkins, left, voices her frustrations Thursday at sending her son, Troy Patterson, 10, right, to private school and therefore not being able to save up for his college education because of the poor quality of the Wilkinsburg School District.
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Board director Richard Bradford estimated the district hasn’t invested significant money in buildings since Kelly was built.

“We’ve done repairs, but not serious investments,” Mr. Donovan said.

First Published: February 20, 2015, 5:00 a.m.

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Sixth-grade teacher Kelly Polosky coaches Dajaun Hamilton with his iPad in early February at Kelly Elementary School in Wilkinsburg.  (Bob Donaldson/Post-Gazette)
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