An update on the reconstruction of Colony Oak Elementary School is scheduled to take place at Monday’s Ripon Unified school board meeting.
This item will be heard during the 7 p.m. open session in the Council Chambers, 259 N. Wilma Ave.
Trustees recently hired the Escalon-based construction firm of CT Brayton & Sons on the lease-lease back plan on converting the Colony Oak to a state-of-the-art STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) campus.
The budget for the Colony Oak project is estimated at $8.8 million.
At last month’s meeting, Andy Strickland, the district’s director of operations, reported that the Colony Oak project plans went to the Division of State Architects in Sacramento. He pointed out back then that there were a few issues on the close out but not enough to cause any delays.
Plans included turning the campus of about 29,000 square feet of portable classrooms into one with permanent buildings with modern electrical and data systems to support the technical infrastructure.
Along with new restrooms, Colony Oak will get 32,000 square feet of parking lot.
Colony Oak students will be able to remain on campus during the actual construction unlike Weston Elementary School.
A few years ago, Weston was the first of the two of the voter-approved Measure G projects to undergo modernization.
During construction, students at Weston had to be shipped off to the other RUSD kindergarten- through eighth- grade campuses during that one school year.
For more information on the school board meeting, call RUSD at 209.599.2131 or log on to www.riponusd.net.
 
To contact reporter Vince Rembulat, e-mail vrembulat@mantecabulletin.com