Welcome to the new school year!

Even during campus closures, the DJUSD Bond Program continues with much needed planning and progress. Over the summer, DJUSD saw a number of Bond Improvements funded by the $235 million Bond approved by Davis voters in 2018.

In exciting news, the District recently learned that we have received $9 million in facilities grant funds to improve Career Technical Education facilities at Da Vinci High School for Computer Science and fabrication and at Davis Senior High School for the Robotics, Automotive and Agriculture programs. These awards are extremely beneficial for the continued Bond campus improvement projects taking place at each site! Congratulations DVHS and DSHS!

You’ll notice a continued theme throughout this newsletter: DSA. DSA is an abbreviation for Division of the State Architect. DSA provides design and construction oversight for California K-12 schools and ensures that we create and develop safe, accessible, and sustainable educational facilities. For more information on this process and what it means, please visit the DSA website.

Good news! The Science Labs at Emerson and Da Vinci Junior High have been approved by the DSA. With contractor selection expected to take place in November, construction could begin as soon as the end of November. DJUSD is projecting that this Bond project could be complete by Spring of 2021. Please watch our virtual community outreach presentation, which was presented to the public in July, for more information about this Bond project. You can also learn more about this project on our website.

All Bond Program projects will include all electric appliances and HVAC units. The intent is to limit or eliminate the use of natural gas, which is considered a fossil fuel. Natural gas service is still anticipated in the Davis Senior High STEM Building and Emerson/DVHS Science Classrooms Project for use in the science lab classrooms and it is also intended to be included in the Davis Senior High School Aquatic Center for heating the pool as electric heating for the pool is cost prohibitive.

Davis Senior High Aquatic Center

In December 2019, the Board prioritized the Aquatic Center as one of the DJUSD Bond Program’s signature projects. Since that time, much time and research has gone into reviewing the site plan of Davis Senior High, meeting with staff and stakeholders and engaging in collaborative discussions with the City. The programming for the pool has been completed. The pool will consist of 17 lanes and two one-meter diving boards. More details and information coming soon!

Davis Senior High STEM Building

Another signature project on the DSHS campus is the proposed STEM Building. Initial programming has been completed for the project and LPA The STEM Building programming was a collaborative effort among DHS stakeholders, the Bond Team, and LPA Architects. More to come on this project in future editions.

In August of 2020, DJUSD announced placement of the CCE MPR on the northside of campus. After thorough consideration of all aspects of the placement possibilities for the CCE MPR and receiving significant feedback from neighbors of Redwood Park, the project will move forward on a northern placement. A virtual community outreach video was posted on the Bond Virtual Community Outreach web page and provides details on the specifics of a north MPR placement. You can still access this video on the DJUSD YouTube channel.

With Board approval of the schematic designs and after rounds of in-person and virtual community outreach, the North Davis and Willett MPR projects are moving forward, with an anticipated DSA submittal in November 2020. You can watch our videos to hear more about these exciting projects (Willett Elementary MPR or North Davis Elementary MPR). The Birch Lane MPR is somewhat ahead of the timeline; it has already been submitted to DSA and we expect construction to begin in early Spring of 2021. Please view the Birch Lane MPR video for more information.

The new preschool campus will be located on the Korematsu Elementary School site. The project is currently in the Bid phase after being recently approved by DSA. We will be selecting a contractor in October and expect to begin construction in late October or early November of 2020. Seven classrooms, an administration building, an expanded parking, a bus loop and an additional drop-off zone will be Included in this project. A Virtual Community Outreach is posted on our YouTube site or you can refer to our website for site specific information about this project.

When students return to campus, they will be able to refill and refresh at DJUSD’s new Hydration Stations. DJUSD is in the process of installing new hydration stations at each school site. New hydration stations are now in place at Davis School for Independent Study, King High, Holmes Junior High and Emerson Junior High schools. Montgomery Elementary and Harper Junior High are currently in the process of installation. Hydration stations also contribute to a sustainable environment by allowing students and staff to fill reusable water bottles throughout the day and eliminate plastic water bottles from our waste.

The Tech Hub at Da Vinci High will be home to a new science lab, physical education locker rooms, a computer science lab, digital production studio, fabrication lab, and maker spaces. With all CTE Grants approved for DJUSD the computer science lab, digital production studio and fabrication lab are all going to have a permanent place at Da Vinci High School! More updates on this exciting project in editions to come. You can also find further information on our website.

• Bond Website: Find information on all things DJUSD Bond Program, including information on bond projects, presentations, bond news stories and more!
• Bond Calendar: View all of our previous and upcoming meetings about our various bond projects.
• Bond Public Outreach: Our public outreach website explains our detailed communication plan that will be followed for each bond project.
• Social Media: Follow DJUSD on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for additional highlights and pictures of our bond projects.#DJUSDBond
• Contact us with questions or feedback at facilityplanning@djusd.net
• Invite your friends and neighbors to subscribe for this e-newsletter!