Work on new Mililani school begins this summer
| • | Map of the new elementary school |
By Scott Ishikawa
Advertiser Central O'ahu Writer
MILILANI — Construction of a second public elementary school in Mililani Mauka that will ease crowding at Mililani Mauka Elementary and accommodate new residents in fast-growing Central O'ahu is scheduled to begin this summer.
The state last month awarded a contract to PER Inc. for the $17 million Phase One of construction for the yet-to-be-named school at the corner of Meheula Parkway and Lehiwa Drive. State Department of Education officials hope work can begin in May or June so the campus can be ready to open for grades K-2 in fall 2003.
Because of limited state money, the school will be built and phased in a couple of grades at a time. State lawmakers representing the Mililani district are pushing for an additional $8 million this legislative session to complete the 12-acre campus for grades 3-5.
The campus will be the third new school built in Mililani since 1993. A blueprint for growth in Central O'ahu calls for 12 more schools from Waiawa above Pearl City to Royal Kunia by 2025.
Department of Education Mililani complex superintendent Gary Griffiths last week said the new campus is designed for a multitrack schedule if necessary. Multitrack — which divides students into groups with each beginning classes at a different time of the year — prompted much debate among Mililani parents and even a lawsuit when Mililani Middle School opened using the same schedule in 1998.
The purpose of multitrack is to allow a school to handle more students. For the new campus, it would mean that its capacity of 650 students could be expanded to handle up to 870 students.
"If we have to go multitrack, the school is able to do so," said Griffiths. "For now, it'll be a single-track school."
Residents have been inquiring about the new elementary school because Mililani Mauka Elementary, which opened in 1993, is already 300 students over its recommended capacity of 900. Mililani Mauka Elementary principal Carol Petersen said she will have 13 portable classrooms next school year to deal with increasing enrollment, "but will still be five classrooms short."
When completed, the new campus will have two classroom buildings, administration building, cafeteria, library media and computer resource centers, a mechanical and electrical building, playfields and 70 parking stalls.
Community leaders met with state education officials last summer to work on the school's design. Mililani Mauka resident Jeanette Nekota, who was part of the community design team, said members pushed for a free-standing library and cafeteria to make it more accessible for community meetings.
"We wanted a library that could be accessed at night from the rear of the campus for meetings," Nekota said. Another unique feature is the outside playcourts will be sheltered to allow students to play in rainy upper Mililani Mauka.
"We have a similar problem when it pours at the (Mililani) middle school; the kids didn't have a place to play," Nekota said. "We've also requested outside bathrooms for use after school and weekends."
The school will also have a multipurpose courtyard to serve as an assembly area for outdoor programs and activities.
School district boundaries to determine who goes to the new school are being drawn up, Griffiths said, adding that students living in the upper portion of Mililani Mauka will most likely attend the new campus.
"These are two excellent schools, so no one loses out in redistricting," he said.
Griffiths said construction work next school year on the second classroom building will be done away from the rest of the campus.
Although the new elementary school has been dubbed "Mililani Mauka II" during the planning process, Griffiths said a different name will be determined.
"Each school should have its own identity," he said. "No one wants to be considered as part of a sequel."
Reach Scott Ishikawa at sishikawa@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2429.
