Storm shelter at Battle Elementary is one step closer to being built
COLUMBIA, Mo (KMIZ)
The Long-Range Facilities Planning Committee on Wednesday recommended a plan that includes adding a storm shelter to Battle Elementary School. It is now up Board of Education to approve the project.
The International Building Code, adopted in 2015, requires educational buildings with an occupant load of 50 or more to have a mandatory storm shelter. The shelters must be built when the code takes effect on Oct. 1, 2026.
Chapter 6 of the city code states Columbia follows the International Building Code, published by the International Code Council, Inc.
Missouri is one of 23 states whose shelters have to withstand winds created by a tornado that withstands 250 miles per hour. The shelters also have to be able to resist debris that may be pelted at them during one of these storms.
According to Columbia Building Regulations Supervisor John Simon, the requirement is not retroactive; meaning if an addition to a building that can hold 50 or more people is added, then a storm shelter is required to be added.
The project is part of a bonding plan voted on in 2022 for a 12,986-square-foot addition to Battle that includes the code-required storm shelter.
“Some of that process goes into when we’ve been building the new elementary schools over the last couple of years; that there are storm shelters developed within them, and within that design and construction,” CPS Board Member and Long Range Planning Committee Chair Blake Willoughby said. “For other schools that have not had them, part of that goes into those building additions we have been planning to put into in response to the growth. So that’s a part of Battle Elementary School, it’s a portion of the addition we were already planning to build when we purchased the land.”
The shelter and new wing to Battle are expected to be ready by the 2025-26 school year. Part of that construction will take place during the school year, which Willoughby said is a good opportunity to provide an active learning experience for students
Willoughby says the school board picked a contractor with experience building while schools are in session. The general contractor for the project is listed as Reinhardt Construction LLC
Willoughby added the school district coordinates with construction crews ensure pickup and drop-off is easy for students and their families. The entire project will cost $7.5 million.
Willoughby said the district will sometimes hear complaints when doing capital projects like this over why certain schools are receiving funding for projects over another.
He says that due to the way the school's tax levy is set certain portions of those funds are restricted for things such as teacher salaries. The board has to say what the money will be used for ahead of time when they present to the voters what they are asking for in bond money. Because of this, the board has to be selective about what projects they can complete and when.
“It might be we wait a year or two to complete a specific project because there are multiple projects and it would be easier to do all of that in one go in compared to doing it in multiple years,” Willoughby said.
