Planning Rationale
Varying environmental considerations need to take place during development of a new school, including understanding environmental impacts the project will have to the existing structures, sub-grade conditions and future users of the school. Evaluation of the potential for environmental impacts at the proposed site for a new school building should be based on historical and current environmental knowledge of the site’s use, subsurface soil conditions, and assessment of existing structures intended for demolition or renovation. The evaluations are used to design specific environmental remedies into the bid documents to ensure the future safety of the intended users once the new school is developed.
For each newly constructed building, as well as annexes and modulars, specific regulatory requirements apply related to asbestos, lead paint, soil contamination, underground storage tanks, chemical and soil waste. Chicago Public Schools (CPS) retain Managing Environmental Consultants (MEC) for each new project to ensure compliance with these regulatory requirements through the planning and design process.