Expansion begins soon at Hadley Junior High

Construction dust soon will be flying at Hadley Junior High School in Glen Ellyn.

After years of trying to alleviate crowding concerns at the school, 240 Hawthorne Blvd. - efforts that included a failed referendum proposal - Glen Ellyn District 41 officials have given the go-ahead for a much smaller expansion project made possible by federal stimulus money.

The project will add about 5,000 square feet to the school's northwest side at an estimated cost of roughly $1.4 million. It will include three new special education classrooms, leaving three rooms in the original building open for after-school programs and classroom use.

"Crowding has been a fact of life in all of our buildings," communications director Julie Worthen said. "We're absolutely packed. We're grateful to have the (stimulus) money that enabled us to do this project."

Last week, the school board awarded the project to Montgomery-based Lite Construction Inc. and work is expected to begin in late February or early March, Worthen said. Lite Construction submitted the lowest of 24 bids at $1,147,806. With professional fees, furniture and equipment, the overall price estimate stands around $1,371,106. Of that, about 56 percent, or $773,294, will be paid with money received through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The rest will be paid from the district's operating funds and donations made by developers.

On top of the three special education classrooms, the addition will include handicapped-accessible bathrooms, storage and office space as well as a resolution room. In April 2007, voters rejected a district plan to borrow $40 million to expand Hadley and four other schools. In that plan, $36 million would have been spent on the junior high school. After 77 percent of voters rejected that plan, district officials started to look elsewhere.

As of this year, 10 of the district's 32 mobile classrooms are at Hadley.

Worthen said the increased interest among contractors is a direct result of the sluggish economy.

"It's a good year to get a good price and get lots of interest," Worthen said. "We have tried to get out early with our bids so we can have the best people out there. This project will benefit the school for many years to come."

Worthen said the plan is for the new classrooms to be ready before the next school year begins.