Hornet Operations Center Bond Update Fall 2024

The construction of the new Hornet Operations Center is nearing completion. The new building, located on Tefft Court, will house the Transportation Department and bus fleet, Buildings and Grounds Department and shop, and HVAC shop. We expect to move departments and buses to the new facility by January 2025. The move will create space for additional student and community-centered renovations at the Middle School.

Main Entrance to Offices

Maintenance Garages and Bus Wash

Projected Started in September of 2023

On Monday, September 25, 2023, Saline Area Schools, in partnership with A.R. Brouwer Company, broke ground for the new Hornet Operations Center, the future home of Saline Area Schools’ Transportation and Building & Grounds Departments. The ceremony, held at 1255 Tefft Court in Saline, marked the beginning of construction for the new facility.

^{Front Entrance Rendering - Renderings designed by Hobbs and Black Architects}

The Hornet Operations Center is one of the 2022 Saline Area Schools bond proposal projects, which earmarked $180 million for vital building site improvements to address the needs of various facilities in the Saline School District. 

^{Aerial rendering}

Rex Clary, Executive Director of Operations at Saline Area Schools, added, “The relocation of three departments to the new Operations Center will allow the existing spaces to be renovated for student use. New renovations at the site of the current Operations Department will feature a STEAM Center for our Middle School students, Middle School athletic facility upgrades, traffic flow improvements around central campus, a new Cosmetology Training Center for the South and West Washtenaw Consortium, and enhancements to the Saline Senior Center.”

^{Key partners on site for the event included City of Saline Mayor, Brian Marl; Saline Area Schools Superintendent, Dr. Stephen D. Laatsch; Saline Area Schools Executive Director of Operations, Rex Clary; President of Liebherr Gear Technology and Automation Systems, Gary Chatell, and Senior Vice President of A.R. Brouwer Company, Ken Westfall.}

Saline Area Schools and the South and West Washtenaw Consortium are excited to include students in the construction journey. Clary said, “Building Trades students have already been exposed to the design process and will start to visit the site monthly to work & learn with experts in their fields of construction. Exposing students to a real world commercial construction site will be a great learning opportunity.”

The Hornet Operations Center, spanning 26,000 square feet, will be built on a seven-acre parcel. The Hornet Operations Center will feature administrative offices and a place for bus drivers to land between routes. The project scope also includes a bus wash, a covered 40-bus parking lot, bus maintenance facilities, and outdoor grounds equipment storage. The infrastructure will be future-proofed, with provisions for electric bus charging stations and solar panels.

^{Side-Bay Doors Rendering}

Saline Area Schools is thankful for many partnerships that have made this project possible. First, to the voters for their support of our schools, to our contractor, A.R. Brouwer, and to their team of subcontractors including Hobbs + Black Architects, and IMEG. Saline Area Schools also appreciates the partnership with Liebherr USA, from which the parcel for the new construction was purchased.

Ken Westfall, Senior Vice President at A.R. Brouwer, stated, “We are truly grateful for the privilege of collaborating with Saline Area Schools to guide this project from its inception to its successful completion in the Design/Build process. Our team is committed to bringing the Hornet Operations Center to fruition. Our goal is to construct a quality building that will endure the test of time, benefiting current and future generations.”

^{Aerial view of the site before construction commenced, September 2023}

The Hornet Operations Center is scheduled to open Winter 2025, providing office space for the Transportation and Buildings and Grounds departments, bus maintenance facilities, a bus wash, and grounds and equipment storage.