JACKSONVILLE — Jacksonville school board members got the ball rolling on the second phase of district-wide campus construction on Monday.  

“We are excited and looking forward to the various phases of construction,” Jacksonville High School Principal Tammy Jones said.  “The students will enjoy a new cafeteria which will have more seating.”

The new construction will add much needed space to the high school and Fred Douglass campuses, Superintendent Joe Wardell said.

Specifically, the board approved the preparation of bid documents so that a maximum guaranteed price could be estimated.  

After the bid documents are prepared and the board receives a maximum guaranteed price, construction can begin, public relations coordinator Marc McCloud said.

In the meeting, Wardell said they will receive and take action on the bid some time in December or January.

He said the projects will begin at the beginning of 2012 and stretch into the next school year.

“Each will have multiple phases that are dependent on the completion of at least one section before the next section can begin,” Wardell said.  

Construction at the high school campus includes the demolition of the existing 300 building, which is located across the street from the Ag building, McCloud said.

Jones said administrators have already taken care of arranging classes so that there are no students in the building this year.

A new pie-slice shaped cafeteria will be constructed in its place, McCloud said.  

The existing cafeteria will be converted into a new band hall once the new cafeteria is built.

High school renovations also entail the construction of eight new science labs and enclosing the breezeways.

Wardell said enclosing the breezeways is necessary for the “safety and security of the students and staff.”

Also, McCloud said, a new facade for the entrance to the building will be constructed.

The improvements to the high school will cost an estimated $12 million, which comprises 24 percent of the total bond expenditures.  

Wardell said improvements this extensive have not been made to the high school since 1999.

Improvements to Fred Douglass Elementary include the construction of a new library and cafeteria.  The current library will be converted into additional classroom space.

Wardell said the project may also include the construction of a new gymnasium that was not incorporated in the bond election.  

The gymnasium will not cost the school district additional funds, since enough money has been saved on the new East Side and Joe Wright construction projects to pay for the building.

“The savings are potentially available because of the great pricing we ha\ve received, to date, on the two elementary schools,” Wardell said.

In the 2010 bond election,  $4.5 million was alloted for the improvements at Fred Douglass, which at the time of its passage, was to constitute 9 percent of the bond expenditures.

Fred Douglass has not seen improvements this extensive for 20 years, Wardell said.

Jeff Edwards of Claycomb Associates Architects said $2.2 million has been spent for the construction of the new Joe Wright Elementary campus, which is now 16.2 percent completed.

East Side Elementary is 10 percent complete, with $1.4 million having been spent.