MUSCATINE COUNTY, IOWA SCHOOL NEWS

Source: Muscatine Journal, August 11, 1971
Submitted by Lynn McCleary, January 15, 2013

CONTRACTS TO BE LET SOON ON SCHOOL
Photos of Old Washington School and the New Elementary School Site.

On Feb. 22, the voters of the Muscatine Community School district voted in favor of a $1,500,000 bond issue to replace the Washington Elementary school at 510 W 3rd. The vote was favorable with 1, 874 yes votes and 1,094 no votes. A 60 per cent yes majority was needed to approve the bond issue and it was passed by a 63.1 percent majority.

Awarding of contracts is expected later this month.

The new three-level building will be located on the Maiden Lane site owned by the school district. It will replace the existing Washington school which was constructed in 1978. The new building will also replace the Kennedy special education school now housed in the former McKinley school on Climer St.

The construction of this new Washington school will also help relieve crowding at Jefferson and McKinley by absorbing approximately 100 students from each school.

Among the reasons for the new Washington elementary school, is the fact that in the 1970-71 school year, nearly 280 students were enrolled in a school built for 150, and the school is lacking in modern facilities. Also, the building does not comply with today’s fire safety standards, there is no room for a lunch program and portable classrooms take up playground space.

The new three-level building will have 18 classrooms for grades one through six, two kindergartens with an adjacent playground, special education unit for students enrolled in the elementary program, multi-use classroom for art and music, a resource center for the distribution of learning materials and for individual or small group study, multi-purpose room that will accommodate physical education, assemblies and the lunch program, and outdoor playgrounds.

Placing the special education facilities in Washington will enable the school district to abandon the Kennedy school which is now used for that purpose.

The building has been designed by architects of Stanley Consultants, Inc.

On April 26, Carleton D. Beh Co. of Des Moines was the successful bidder on the $1.5 million bond issue. Their bid was a net interest rate of 3.98221 or a total interest of $498,374.50 to be paid on the bond issue through 1982. Beh’s bid was the only one of nine under a four percent net interest.

Mrs. V.R. Calvert, 113 W. 4th, was the successful bidder on the house on Maiden Lane near Broadway which was moved from the new Washington school site.