School Board to review architect short list for new high school

Posted 1/19/21

OKEECHOBEE– Okeechobee County School Board members will be reviewing an architect short list for a new high school at their next meeting on Jan. 19.

The long process of getting funding for a …

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School Board to review architect short list for new high school

Posted

OKEECHOBEE– Okeechobee County School Board members will be reviewing an architect short list for a new high school at their next meeting on Jan. 19.

The long process of getting funding for a new high school approved by the state cleared its first hurdle way back on July 31, 2020. It was then that a Special Facilities Preapplication Committee from Tallahassee visited Okeechobee High School and determined that the building was in critical need of replacement.


The Okeechobee County School District originally applied for funding for a new high school in 2015. However, after a critical needs committee visited the campus that year, they determined the facility was not a critical need and that the building still had life left in it.


In 2019 the school board approved applying for special facilities consideration again. The committee, consisting of two representatives from the Florida Department of Education and two from other school districts, was scheduled to visit the high school in late March to early May 2020, but COVID-19 delayed that and the visit was rescheduled to July.


Following that approval by the Special Facilities Preapplication Committee, members of the school district made another presentation to the Special Facilities Committee in September, along with other districts requesting funds, to be ranked for future funding through the Special Facilities program.


The Special Facilities Committee ranked Okeechobee High School as second most in need just behind an elementary school in Calhoun County which suffered damage from Hurricane Michael.


The architect short list will feature four architecture firms who’ve submitted proposals to the district. Those four firms delivered presentations to a selection committee on Jan. 11. CRA Architects based out of Tallahassee received the highest marks from the committee.


CRA has designed multiple schools in Florida, including South Fork High School in Stuart and Marathon Middle/High School in Marathon.

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