District 11 plans to repurpose five schools and fix up dozens following enrollment decline

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) —  Colorado Springs’ oldest school district announced plans to improve most of its 50 buildings, including rebuilding or renovating 15 and repurposing five campuses.

The five campuses slated for repurposing include Buena Vista, Edison, Henry, Queen Palmer, and Taylor elementary schools. 

District 11 leaders also plan to renovate all five high schools to include technical education opportunities, renovate the high school auditoriums, and replace middle-high school tracks.

“So many of these schools are over 60 years old,” said Susan Miller, who works for the consulting firm hired to help the district make some of these decisions.

Other improvements aim to modernize the district’s schools and make them safer.

“We have a lot of issues throughout the district, one of those being air conditioning,” said Josh Chism, the project manager for the facilities master plan. “And this facilities master plan would address that.”

Leaders are hoping to replace some schools altogether. They say the cost to renovate some of the oldest buildings would nearly equal the cost to start from scratch.

District 11 has recorded a consistent drop in enrollment since 2017. Projections show the enrollment dip will likely continue over the next seven years as well.

The plan comes with a $1.03 billion price tag. The district is going to ask voters to approve bond measures this fall to help finance the makeover.