What is ASB’s new construction project? Who is in charge? Why is it needed? When will it be finished? This reporter has questions, and today this reporter will be finding answers.
ASB is constantly evolving, constantly changing, and continuously improving. As one of the largest and most high-end international schools in Spain, ASB is constantly having to transform its premises to entertain the ever-adapting student body. In recent years, ASB has outlined plans to remodel the high school and build on top of the red poli, but due to the widespread confusion and misinformation, the construction plans have never been harder to decipher. Today, this reporter will bring the truth to light about what’s really going down in the construction and answer some need-to-know questions about the projects happening at ASB. But first, to know the past, one must know the present, and this reporter will be going through past construction projects on the ASB campus to fully get to know how this construction is going to play out. In the year 2009, the very first ideas for a renovated school were generated, but were very elaborate and complex, and would take nearly seventeen years to finally get put into action. This reporter found these plans on an active construction website that captures details about successful construction projects, called “Arq 71,” and they were the original plans for all the construction at our school.
In other words, in environments such as Finland, where shared trust and support are nearly ubiquitous among strangers, society garners higher rates of happiness.
Moreover, Finland is consistently categorized as one of the least corrupt countries, and there are widespread sentiments of belonging to a community, a feeling that is hard to replicate in countries where individualism is prevalent. People trust their institutions, neighbors, and strangers; they regularly leave valuables and even strollers with kids unattended in public. In education systems, not only are teachers highly respected, but schools foster fairness, collaboration, critical thinking, creativity, and equality in children. Students then grow into adults who value personal development and knowledge.
Another important source of contentment is accessibility and connection with nature, even in icy temperatures. Finns will ski, ice skate, plunge into frosty lakes, or simply spend time walking outdoors in the beautiful Finnish landscapes—thanks to the “everyman’s” rights, which are laws that are in place across the Nordic countries so that people can explore nature freely.
They chose then to begin expanding the school to create the campus that we know today. All of the surrounding land was bought out, with the green field and the amphitheater construction finally being finished a couple of years later, in 2012. ASB was riding the wave of construction, and chose to build the library, the ECC building, and the elementary school as well in 2014. These were the first new buildings constructed since ASB’s move to its new location, and would usher ASB into a new era. Another of ASB’s large construction projects happened a bit more recently, in 2019. This building was the middle school building, a high-tech, modern school, which is also very renewable.
But now that we know all about the history of ASB construction, what will come next? And what will it look like? In this reporter’s quest for answers, all the signs were pointing towards the administration office being the base of operations for the construction. The original plan was to interview Mr. Bill Volchok to try to find some answers. As the assistant director and the brains behind the construction, he was bound to have invaluable information for this investigation. However, Mr. Volchok did not to respond to my email and refused to comment. This reporter was running out of ideas, and only had one place left to go—the maintenance department.
Mr. José Manuel is the head of maintenance at this school, and when asked for an interview, gladly accepted. Mr. Manuel said that he is “in charge of planning the design for the building, the direction that the plans are going in, and being the person in the middle between ASB and the construction company.”
Throughout this interview, this reporter asked several probing questions to try to get the best answers for the readers. The first question was what would be inside the new buildings, and Mr. Manuel provided an extremely detailed response.
The areas that would be renovated in the coming years are the following: the blue gym, the red poli, and the subspaces in front of the green field. The blue gym would be replaced fully by a 3 -story building that would be partially buried in the ground. It would have a new gym underneath the building, which is similar to the auditorium. On top of the red poli, there will be a new building reminiscent of the middle school, but with an absolutely gigantic cafeteria, a new library, and an even bigger auditorium.
These large projects seemed very ambitious, so this reporter asked Mr. Manuel if they really are necessary for the school, and there appeared to be a very clear answer. According to him, the school is constantly increasing its population of students, and therefore needs more and more space. The substations (Also known as the shipping containers) in front of the pitch are a waste of space, and are also an eyesore because of their old and retired appearance.
The plans for the new buildings hint towards construction beginning in the year 2027, but concerns are rising, Mr. Manuel reveals. The new middle school terrace took an entire summer to build, even though all they had to do was pave the floor and place the new basketball hoops. Despite time management concerns, the school might not even get the green light from the Espluges Town Hall to go ahead with construction.
If ASB does not get approved within the next two months, the entire construction project might get delayed by a year. This would push construction back to 2028—a lengthy delay.
Approximately seventy percent of construction projects are delayed, according to a study in 2006 by Sadi Assaf onScienceDirect, so ASB construction is not alone, but hopefully this construction plan can stay on track as much as possible.
As the interview came to a close, this reporter had several more questions for Mr. Manuel, like how the new buildings actually be funded and financed. As it turns out, the new construction will be partially funded by donations from the public and partially funded by the school. Furthermore, there will be a fundraiser to gather money for the construction. Another important question was the construction company, and Mr. Manuel clarified that ASB would still be using Maheco construction.
To conclude, Mr. Manuel revealed that he was very excited for the new buildings to be put into place, because it meant less maintenance work for his crew, and that it would make it an interesting job to complete. The construction at ASB won’t be quick, but all signs point towards it being a good long-term investment and a worthy addition to our school.