Board scales back Valley Park facility fix from $7.5M to $1.5M, splits project into phases

What happened

At the August 26, 2026 meeting, the Board approved an amendment to the FY2028-2033 Six-Year Capital Improvement Plan that revises Project No. 2, the Valley Park Code and Life Safety Upgrades, from an estimated $7,500,000 down to a Phase 1 estimate of $1,500,000, addressing only the most urgent egress and accessibility corrections at the shared Ketchikan Charter School/TSAS building.

Why it matters to families

Valley Park has documented structural, code, life-safety, and accessibility deficiencies (including a recent emergency repair to exterior egress stairs). Scaling the project back to a first phase means major accessibility issues \u2014 including an inaccessible elevator and lower-level classrooms serving two schools \u2014 will not be fully addressed in the near term, and the full cost of remaining work (later phases estimated near $5.2M-$6.3M) will need future funding decisions.

The evidence

Agenda item 11b states the amendment 'revises the estimated cost from $7,500,000 to $1,500,000' for 'Phase 1' addressing 'the facility's most urgent egress and accessibility corrections,' with the plan adopted by Board motion on August 26, 2026.

The source