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BACKGROUND
Need: The Noatak School is extremely overcrowded. It is currently at 230% of capacity without including the 4 year olds enrolled in kindergarten. The existing school is 22,000 sq. ft. school. The school needs to be 40,000 sq. ft. just to house today's students . Noatak, unlikely many other villages, is experiencing rapid growth, with young families returning to the community. There is steady employment at the nearby Red Dog Mine. Within just five more years Noatak School will be at 320% of capacity if something is not done. State DEED guidelines support a 54,500 sq. ft. school to meet the projected demand. Existing Site Constraint: The most cost effective option for increasing capacity is generally an addition. Unfortunately, land issues eliminate this option. The existing school site is just over two acres and it is located in the direct approach to the airstrip. In fact, the elementary portion of the school sits on land controlled by DOT Aviation. (DOT/PF constructed the elementary school). Location of a school on this property violates FAA regulations. Conflicts with airstrip use, river erosion and private land rule out expansion in the existing location. Should the airstrip be relocated in the immediate future the current location could be used for expansion. There is little likelihood of this occurring. Renovation and Expansion of the existing school would have been a less costly option but this is impossible given the property restraints. With these limitations the District is faced with construction of a new school on a new site. (NANA will donate the land).
Northwest Arctic Borough
School District PO Box 51, Kotzebue,
AK 99752 |
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