Students at Howard-Ellis and Ring Lardner will soon be able to check out their brand new classrooms and updated schools, according to associate project manager for Skillman Corporation Nate Preston.
Preston gave a presentation on 2016 summer construction progress during last Monday’s school board meeting. He said the team was on schedule in its goal to complete construction in the next couple of months.
Preston listed several big ticket items that had been transformed, including the demolition of corridor ceilings and installation of electrical, mechanical and plumbing infrastructure throughout the corridors.
“If you have driven by you can see that the building is well underway,” Preston said.
He said that construction workers are working on erecting steel for the new gymnasium.
Board members were excited to hear how close the Howard-Ellis project fell within budget. The projected nearly $8 million project had a $32,000 net difference.
“On an $8 million project, that’s phenomenal,” said board member Dana Daniels. “To get that close as a net is almost miraculous.”
Additionally, the contingency budget, which is built in funding to allow for unanticipated costs encountered during construction, still had about $290,000 in the remaining budget.
There is still some minor masonry to be completed, as well as finishing the roof and mechanical and electrical components.
The work is expected to be completed in late March to early April when students will be on spring break.
“This work is going to be very systematic and realistically most of these updates are going to be very similar,” Preston said.
The Ellis Elementary building, a separate facility which neighbors Howard Elementary, will be closed down eventually and students will be moved under one brand new roof.
Howard-Ellis principal Michelle Asmus said the district plans to move the entire south wing into those 13 new classrooms during the spring break period.
The construction will be aided through a 2015 bond for $40 million, which will seek to fund work on four – school buildings including Ballard Elementary and Eastside Connections in addition to Howard-Ellis and Ring Lardner.
Preston said the construction at Ring Lardner Middle School is similar in scope, but smaller in magnitude.
All overhead mechanical, electrical and plumbing components have been installed, as have the demolition of the ceiling corridors.
“If you were there a week before school and a week after school, the difference is ceiling tiles and it makes a big difference,” Preston said.
Five classrooms are under construction and it is expected that they will be available for students and teachers to use in November. And the building addition is expected to be complete in January.
Within the next month Preston said contractors will complete exterior framing, which includes carpets and overhangs.