Monday, December 17, 2007
Hammers and nails
From installing new ceilings to constructing a new school, the three school systems in Lee County have been busy over the summer making renovations and changes to facilities - most will be completed by the first day of school.
August 5, 2007
From installing new ceilings to constructing a new school, the three school systems in Lee County have been busy over the summer making renovations and changes to facilities - most will be completed by the first day of school.
Students and parents might find changes on ongoing construction at their school when they return for classes on Aug. 9. Here’s a list of each school system’s current construction projects and when they are expected to be finished:
- Auburn City Schools The renovated RUS building on Pumphrey Avenue will house facility maintenance, the transportation department and child nutrition offices. The facility will include the mechanics shop, school storage, as well as a new school bus parking area with bus wash and fuel station. The facility is slated to be completed by mid-September, according to ACS Administrative Assistant for Operations and Services Todd Freeman. The bus wash will probably be ready for use by November, he added. The addition of 20 classrooms to Auburn High School is slated to be completed in April 2008, Freeman said. Work began on the project in January, he said. By the start of the 2008-2009 school year, Richland Elementary School is expected to be open and fully operating. Construction on Auburn’s fifth elementary school is slated to be completed by spring 2008, Freeman said. The school will be similar in design to Yarbrough Elementary School.
- Lee County Schools The expansion of the Beulah High School bandroom is slated to be completed by fall, according to LCS Director of Operations Lee Lindsay. “It’s basically doubled the size of the bandroom,“ he said. Beauregard High School is having a “facelift,“ Lindsay said, with a new roof on the gym and dressing areas, renovation of the dressing facilities in the old gym and renovation of the old elementary hallway with a new floor and ceiling. In addition, he said, the lunchroom received a new ceiling and more than half of the restrooms were renovated with new fixtures, toilets, petitions, ceilings and lighting. A new roof was installed at Smiths Station Primary School, including the lunchroom, Lindsay said. Smiths Station Intermediate School received a new drop ceiling, he said. The five additional classrooms at Loachapoka Elementary and High School will probably not be ready for occupation until September, Lindsay said.
- Opelika City Schools No major construction projects were started or completed during the summer in the Opelika school system, said OCS Assistant Superintendent Kenneth Burton. Northside School received a new roof to replace one installed last year, he said. Opelika City Schools moved into its renovated central office on Simmons Street in May, just before the end of the 2006-2007 school year. The 15,000-square-foot building features more offices and storage and a private, parent conference room.