Grace Best Picture Tour

03/31/2025

Some discussion I had about Grace Best deterioration follows.

Have you ever taken a step on what looks like a perfectly good stair, and have it collapse?

Were you surprised?

Here is a few issues with Grace Best that might surprise you similarity.

Why did you leave out the most impactful ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) requirements?

Were you concerned your omissions would wreck your credibility?

Why did you not include: the widening of the hallways and room doorways to accommodate wheel chair widths?

Related, widening building doorways again to accommodate wheelchair dimensions.

Interior of classrooms must be changed to allow larger sq footage per student and reducing the number of students per classroom.

Completely remove basement window wells as new emergency exits not 10 foot deep traps with mold, mildew and even some mushrooms growing inside the wells.

Rip out all the walls, ceilings, interior pipes confirmed as containing asbestos and anything currently in mitigation. ( likely the entire basement and the gym sub-floors asbestos insulation)

All electrical wiring, switch boxes, fuse boxes and restring building connections to public power. All electrical outlets must be removed and replaced with grounded safety fused circuit breakers.

The current roof(s) do not meet standards and drainage control is non-compliant.

Your misinformation agent accusations includes your omission of a whole list of deficiencies.

What about all the windows and frames needing replacement. The window’s frames themselves have rotted and water leaks have mold and mildew within the frame from discolor indications around the inside frames walls.

It goes on and on. Your missing “information” is an indictment on your lack of full information.

And FINALY, what research have you done on the lead contamination in Grace Best. The old water lead pipes carrying water around the school likely will need remove and replace.

Show me all these damage/replacement assessments from KPE.

So, is GB a safe building? A modern building? A building with today’s essentials like even a wired or WiFi internet in classrooms? School security precautions? Large enough parking lots? Bus service? Modern fire suppression systems?

I would not permit my grandkid to attend Grace Best like my daughter did. I wouldn’t want to be surprised one sad day. Would you?

03/17/2025

The old 62,000 square feet of GB space is ultimately not accurate after a remodel. Similar Canyon City school district projects provide better insight into actuals.

Once again, by modifying an old building by more than 15%, current building code must be applied.

ADA compliant hallways, classroom size required per student, doorway sizes, elevators for access to 2d floors, and on and on will REDUCE existing GB usable space. Even GB bathrooms will need to be gutted and rebuilt.

Basically the interior of GB will be demolished and rebuilt to ADA. AND, building security entrances “man traps” are new requirements and the student hallway lockers will need removal and replacement with the possibility that will expose large areas of toxic mold, mildew, and potentially even more asbestos.

Then there are unsafe windows, the exterior basement window wells are deadly fire trap escape paths, the cracked and shifting exterior walls are suspect to foundation problems, and on and on.

I have a fond place in my ♥️ for Grace Best memories with my daughter and it would be great to return to a healthy building.

However, current D38 estimates to return GB to a safe and modern building are inadequate. A similar project was completed in Canon City to refurb an old school to modern standards. Go look at that project line items and costs and then apply inflation. Shocking.

03/16/2025

Will State of Colorado law require, upon sale of a building non-compliant with current Colorado school building code (CDPH&E), modification to ADA ( https://www.ada.gov/law-and-regs/design-standards/ ) standards?

Same issue with electrical, fire suppression, and other utilities even to reconfiguring roof and waste water management systems.

What are I expect, Huge cost implications potentially requiring massive interior demolition and reconstruction in hallways, classroom sizes, emergency exit configurations, HVAC, etc etc.

What are your cost estimates for this law mandated GB reconstruction requirements?

How long after purchase will the schedule be to remodel to become compliant with code?

And then there is soil composition drilling, testing for potential contaminants, and assessment of environmental risks and recertifications for radon, asbestos removal, and other potential situations like soil stability and mixtures of inconstant land fill materials at GB initial construction times

Thanks.

The ADA Standards for Accessible Designs say what is required for a building or facility to be physically accessible to people with disabilities.

01/29/2025

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bendegrow_nationalschoolchoiceweek-activity-7290442709763248128-pfmv?utm_medium=ios_app&utm_source=social_share_sheet&utm_campaign=copy_link

Lewis-Palmer D-38's board of education unanimously approved the demolition of the Grace Best Education Center during their regular meeting Jan. 21, 2025. The difficult decision comes following years of discussions, deliberations and a mandate by the Monument Fire Department last fall.

01/21/2025

Tonight we should know after a decade of waffling.

https://gazette.com/thetribune/lewis-palmer-d-38-seeks-input-on-future-of-longtime-facility/article_790549ae-d5c2-11ef-bf35-23f500efc009.html?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR2YTppk4zzcmFQ_zE5l-6t5cfqC1oUk4PuRSqN7fgyDwRQZonWQOylIVV8_aem_6j1dLd2BBcBolKfB_76GLw

Parents, families and staff members raised concerns about the future of programming as the District 38 school board looks into repair options for the Best Grace Facility at Thursday night's public meeting.

01/19/2025

Maybe a Grace Best inspection road map.

https://www.facebook.com/share/15VjibRJ54/?mibextid=wwXIfr

The engineering firm Colorado Springs School District 11 hired for structural analysis on Jenkins Middle School, asked fire officials on Monday for an extension to shut down the building.

01/16/2025

Meeting at D38 “Big Red” Admin building this evening to discuss the condition, fate, and plans for Grace Best.

I walked around GB yesterday to see the current condition. Some previous structural concerns appear corrected. Some new observations are provided below in response to other discussions on media.

Here is my post concerning my exterior only walk-around.

10/31/2024

Asbestos can show up almost anywhere.

10/08/2024

Good News. Monument Fire District (MFD) is laying down the law to protect Grace Best kids and D38 staff from the dangers of continued use and the associated health threats of this terrible building.

Stay tuned. This has 12 months as a deadline.

FINALLY. After a decade of expressing my concerns, there may finally be a mandated solution. 🇺🇸👍

https://gazette.com/thetribune/fire-department-gives-12-month-timeline-to-d38-for-grace-best-solutions/article_550490ee-83f8-11ef-9e21-77b4b08163b6.html?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0xjEhSmOsVXSgTGVvLLXVwR682bjcZoDnW9YNNz56-TtH53fDmcX227u0_aem_FhiDrGHJWpeHkhjDR8nTRQ

The Lewis-Palmer School District has 12 months to make a timeline decision and plan of action towards the future of its Grace Best facility.

03/21/2024

Asbestos in D38. After a decade of my advocating for the complete removal of know asbestos contamination in Grace Best or close the building completely, and a trip to Environmental Environment Protection Agency (EPA) in Washington D.C. after several exchanges with the CDPH&E and EPA Area Directors, progress about recognizing the risks of asbestos continues.