Brunswick Schools continues construction on site improvements and buildings in the district

BRUNSWICK — Brunswick Schools' facilities master plan is currently in various stages of construction with some work estimated to be complete in the spring. Superintendent Jason Niedermeyer said work on Applewood Elementary School's parking lot began shortly after Kidder Elementary School's parking lot was complete. Applewood's parking lot addition was finished in the fall before the asphalt plants closed for the winter. "We've begun using that parking lot after we came back from Thanksgiving break, so we are thrilled with the outcome of that project," he said. "We've now been able to separate our bus traffic from our school age parent traffic, and we feel that it's a much safer scenario for our parents both at Applewood and Kidder." The classroom additions at Applewood and Kidder are currently going through the design process, Niedermeyer said. "We will be leaving schematic design and moving toward design development here in the coming weeks," he said. "We're excited about the progress that is taking place with that part of the project." Construction has begun on the new maintenance facility, Niedermeyer said. It is a pre-engineered metal building, and the metal framing for the roof is in place. "We are anticipating that the roofing panels will go on in the next week or two," he said. "After that happens, you'll see the side paneling go on. Then we'll just be waiting for the weather to break, and then we can do underground utilities and pour the slab for that foundation." The maintenance facility is part of an earlier phase of construction because the existing maintenance department sits on the site for the new high school, Niedermeyer said. "We have to gain access to the construction site in order to get to our equipment," he said. "That's really why we need to get our new maintenance department up and running as quickly as possible, because the existing maintenance department is going to have to be demolished." Work on the maintenance facility is estimated to be complete in the spring, Niedermeyer said. Shortly after, work will begin on the new board of education office. "They'll do the same thing there," he said. "They'll set the foundations, they'll pour the slab, and then that is also a pre-engineered metal building. That part of the project is running smoothly and is underway." The new high school is still in the early site work part of the process, Niedermeyer said. The district will soon have to go through another budget reconciliation process and determine the guaranteed maximum price for the project. Then, a groundbreaking for the high school is expected to occur in mid-April. "When you drive down the street, you're not necessarily seeing a lot happening right now, but behind the scenes, we're very busy in the design process," he said. "We're very busy in the stuff that people don't see that's under the ground right now." The projects will finish Brunswick Schools' facilities master plan, and they are funded by a $102 million bond issue passed in May 2023. To keep up with updates on construction in the district, visit tinyurl.com/2xandkn4. Contact reporter Madisyn Woodring at (330) 721-4049 or mwoodring@medina-gazette.com.