Stanford Renovations Among First of Expedited AC Projects

Workers at Stanford Middle School this summer will set in motion the Long Beach Unified School District’s accelerated air conditioning timeline. The school’s campuswide renovations will include new high-efficiency AC systems, technology upgrades, accessibility improvements and other enhancements that support teaching and learning.

Installation of new heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems at District schools is funded by LBUSD’s Measure E bonds. Last year, the District accelerated the planned installation of HVAC systems in response to fall’s record-setting temperatures and the rising incidence of extreme heat and poor air quality days. HVAC installations at most schools that don’t yet have AC moved up by one school year or more.

HVAC projects at Gant Elementary School and Tincher Preparatory School will begin next summer, and AC installations at five other LBUSD campuses will start the following year. All District schools will have air conditioning in the next four years except Polytechnic High School, where HVAC will be completed in 2028 as part of Poly’s campuswide transformation.

The installation of air conditioning is, by necessity, a multiyear project due to design planning, available labor, materials and the incremental issuance of school bonds funds, among other factors. The District’s accelerated HVAC timeline considers these factors and the availability of interim housing for students who are relocated as schools undergo renovations.

Measure Q, LBUSD’s $1.7 billion bond measure, will provide air conditioning systems at aging campuses that did not need HVAC under Measure E but now have systems approaching end of life.