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Madrona Project

Latest Project Updates

10/01/18 UPDATE:

Madrona K-8 will move into their new building over Winter Break.

On Friday, 9/28, a team of Edmonds School District staff, led by Superintendent McDuffy and Asst. Superintendent Irish, met with the Madrona staff to discuss the details of the upcoming move and process staff feedback.

A mid-year move is more than simply packing up and moving, it also involves reserving large blocks of substitute teachers and custodians, securing the services of Bekins Movers, and many more logistics. We look forward to Madrona K-8’s first day of school in their new building in January of 2019!

09/17/18 UPDATE:

Edmonds School District administrators will meet with representatives from the Madrona K-8 staff and the Edmonds Education Association on September 28 to discuss potential dates and plans for moving into the new school building.

09/11/18 UPDATE
The Edmonds School District Board of Directors voted to authorize the water service agreement with Olympic View Water & Sewer District for water service to Madrona. The vote for approval was unanimous.
09/10/18 UPDATE:

The Olympic View Water & Sewer District Board of Commissioners met this evening and voted to authorize the general manager to approve the water service agreement with Edmonds School District for water service at Madrona. The Edmonds School District Board of Directors will vote at their regularly scheduled meeting on September 11.

09/05/18 UPDATE:

The Edmonds School District board will meet on Tuesday, September 11. The Olympic View Water & Sewer District board will meet on Monday, September 10. During these meetings, each board plans to vote on the water service agreement.

08/30/18 UPDATE:

We are pleased to be able to share with you that we have reached an agreement for water service with Olympic View Water & Sewer District, pending approval by both elected boards.

Mediation took place as scheduled on August 29 and we were able to come to an agreement after eleven hours of negotiation. More details to come, but we wanted to share the good news with you as quickly as possible.

We know the path to reaching this agreement has been difficult for all involved, and want to thank you for your patience and your commitment to upholding the values and standards of the Madrona K-8 community.


Former Alderwood Middle
20000 28th Ave 
Lynnwood, WA 98036

Madrona K-8 students and staff will start the 2018-2019 school year at the former Alderwood Middle School. The former Alderwood Middle School property is similar in size to Madrona K-8, providing a campus large enough to accommodate Madrona's more than 600 students. It has extensive outdoor space - including playground equipment - to provide much-needed recess and recreational space. The former Alderwood Middle School building was constructed as a junior high school in 1966 but went through major modernization in 1988, and additional modernization in 2001.

Construction Progress

FAQs

Q1:  Why can’t Madrona stay in the old building until the new school opens?

A:  Construction of the new Madrona K-8 project cannot be completed while the old building is in place. Demolition of the old building is underway this summer so that construction can meet the original completion date of October 16, 2018, for all aspects of the project.


 

Q2:  Why are Madrona students moving to the Former Alderwood Middle School instead of temporarily moving to a closer building?

A:  The former Alderwood Middle School property is similar in size to Madrona K-8, providing a campus large enough to accommodate our more than 600 students. It has extensive outdoor space – including playground equipment – to provide much-needed recess and recreational space.


 

Q3:  What is the timeline for moving to the Former Alderwood Middle School (FAM)?

A:  Madrona’s classroom materials were moved into storage at FAM on June 27-29. In early August, Lynnwood Elementary, which was housed at FAM for the 2017-2018 school year, will be moving classroom materials out of FAM. After that, Madrona’s classroom materials will be moved into classrooms. The goal is for Madrona teachers to have access to classrooms at FAM on or around August 16.


 

Q4:  Will families be able to tour the former Alderwood Middle School before school starts in September?

A:  There will be an MIT Back-to-School barbecue and ice-cream social on Sunday, August 19, from 4-6:30 p.m., at which time you can tour the building.


 

Q5:  Is the Former Alderwood Middle School building safe?

A:  Yes. It is being maintained to temporarily house schools under construction. Lynnwood Elementary was located at FAM for the 2017-2018 school year.


 

Q6: How will transportation work for Madrona students to/from the former Alderwood Middle School?

A:  As Madrona K-8 is a district-wide program, we already provide transportation between Madrona K-8 and certain local schools. We also provide transportation to students in the Deaf and Hard of Hearing program. Madrona K-8 and Deaf and Hard of Hearing transportation will remain in place with the substitution of the former Alderwood Middle School for the Madrona campus. There will be some rebalancing of bus departure and arrival times to account for variations in travel time to the new location. General education routing is available on our website at: http://bit.ly/madrona-bus-routes.

 

 

If you have questions or concerns, please contact Transportation Services at (425) 431-7230.


 

Q7:  Are start and end times changing?

A:  No. Class will still begin at 9:20 a.m. and end at 3:50 p.m.


 

Q8:  Will before/after school care be available?

A:  Kids Krew will be located in the cafeteria, and use the gym and outdoor play areas.


 

Q9: Why did Edmonds School District decide to use stormwater wells at Madrona?

A:  Edmonds School District chose stormwater wells after extensive study because they provided the highest level of water quality in the most cost-effective way. The wells support ESD’s and Madrona School’s environmental values by copying the natural process of restoring the aquifer with clean water. Alternatives to stormwater wells would be a stormwater detention pond or an underground concrete vault. A detention pond would take up playfield space and would require water to be pumped uphill, against engineering best practices. An underground vault would also require water to be pumped uphill, and would raise concerns about the volume of stormwater that would be going into the City of Edmonds systems.  Another approach would have been adding an overland pipe from either detention structure down the steep slope to the storm drainage system at Former Woodway. This approach would be problematic to the City of Edmonds due to the lack of drainage from this basin.



 

Q10: Has the stormwater system at Madrona been approved?

A:  Agencies with jurisdiction over the Madrona stormwater system are the City of Edmonds and the Washington State Department of Ecology. Edmonds School District has followed all permitting requirements for the plan and construction of our Madrona school and its stormwater system. The City of Edmonds approved and issued a permit for the stormwater construction. Final approval for our stormwater system cannot be given by the Department of Ecology until it is complete and operational. As stated in their letter to OVWSD (will add link) dated June 19, 2018, DOE sees no reason why our stormwater system will not be approved at the appropriate time.


 

Q11: Why didn’t Edmonds School District accept Olympic View Water & Sewer District’s proposed water service agreement?

A: The proposed agreement imposes unusually severe and unprecedented conditions that are not authorized by the applicable regulations for stormwater quality. The proposed agreement would require Edmonds School District to make expensive modifications to the completed construction, further delaying student use of the facilities. It would require an expensive monitoring plan that exceeds the enhanced version ESD has developed with the Department of Ecology. The proposed agreement imposes an overbroad and unique legal liability on Edmonds School District.


 

Q12: When was the water service agreement proposed?

A:  The agreement that Olympic View Water & Sewer District presented to Edmonds School District in late May of 2018 presented the same demands that they made starting in early 2017. Renewed negotiations to reach a water service agreement in June of 2018 were unsuccessful.


 

Q13:  What did you do to address the demands when they were first presented in early 2017?

A:  After extensive discussion, research, and modification of the construction designs and monitoring plan, Edmonds School District responded to those demands in writing in September of 2017. Accommodations that Edmonds School District made include:

  • Installation of shut-off valves
  • Extending the monitoring period from Dept. of Ecology standard two years to five years
  • Increasing the number of monitoring wells from one to four
  • Developing an expanded list of potential pollutants to monitor


 

Q14: When those accommodations didn’t result in an agreement, what else did you do to try to resolve the issue?

A:  ESD proposed a September 2017 meeting with all parties; OVWSD declined. ESD offered mediation in November of 2017; OVWSD declined. Both districts then worked together to determine the scope of an independent, third-party review (add link) of the stormwater system.  OVWSD removed itself from the process, but ESD proceeded with the review. The report was published on June 1, 2018. Although not required by either regulatory agency having jurisdiction – the Washington State Department of Ecology or the City of Edmonds – Edmonds School District offered the following modifications to the stormwater system, at OVWSD’s request:

  • Additional testing duration
  • Additional monitoring wells
  • Additional indemnification language


 

Q15: How much would it cost to comply with OVWSD’s demands?

A:  If ESD uses the stormwater well system currently under construction at Madrona, the additional construction costs to comply with OVWSD demands would likely be $300,000 -$500,000 and the ongoing costs to the general fund would likely be $100,000 or more every year. If ESD were to comply with OVWSD’s preferred system, a pumped detention vault design, it would cost approximately $4 million and delay the project a year. The City of Edmonds has stated that they do not favor this more expensive system.


 

Q16: How much is it costing Edmonds School District to move Madrona K-8 to the Former Alderwood Middle School for the start of the 2018-2019 school year?

A: The cost to modify the Former Alderwood Middle School to make it suit Madrona’s unique needs is estimated to be $15,000-$25,000.  A school move costs around $35,000.


 

Q17: Are you still working to reach an agreement?

A:  Yes. We have worked tirelessly for over a year to find a resolution with OVWSD. Our most recent offer to go to mediation in late June of 2018 has been accepted, and we are working to expedite the process to resolve the situation. ESD and OVWSD have agreed on a mediator and set a mediation date of August 29.


 

Q18: Why can’t we get an earlier mediation date?

A:  A list of mediators had to be identified and agreed upon. ESD’s attorney identified four possible mediators and gave those names to OVWSD’s attorney. Some of these mediators were available in July and could have met with us then. OVWSD’s attorney rejected all four mediators, then gave us a list of four other mediators.  ESD agreed to two of them. We then started looking at calendars of when people in all parties were available. OVWSD’s attorney did not want to start until after August 7th. Based on the availability of the mediator, OVWSD’s attorney, OVWSD, ESD's attorney, and ESD, August 29 was the earliest we could all meet.


 

Q19: If you could reach an agreement this summer would Madrona K-8 still have to start the 2018-2019 school year at the Former Alderwood Middle School?

A: Yes. On June 20, 2018, FORMA Construction issued a formal written notice of delay due to a lack of permanent water service. The delay impacts Phase 1: Building Occupancy. Due to the delay, Madrona K-8 must move to the Former Alderwood Middle School for the start of the 2018-2019 school year.


 

Q20: When will construction of the new Madrona K-8 school be complete?

A: We have implemented a temporary water solution for construction to continue with an overall project completion date of October 16, 2018.


 

Q21:  When will we move into the new Madrona K-8 school?

A:  ESD will work with the Madrona community to determine the earliest reasonable move-in date after a water service agreement is reached. The move will require additional time for affected Madrona teachers and staff and must be coordinated with the Edmonds Education Association.