School District’s projects continue to take shape

Construction projects continue as the Ohio County School District is finishing up a series of projects, totaling $11 million, which began earlier this year.

The projects called for a preschool addition at Wayland Alexander Elementary School, renovations and construction at the Area Technology Center and construction of an auxiliary gymnasium behind the middle and high school buildings. The final project is set to be completed in February 2022 pending delays.

The Wayland Alexander preschool addition is four additional classrooms, two of which will be for preschool and two other rooms to be utilized however the principal chooses, according to School Superintendent Seth Southard.

Southard said the furniture was being set up in the building Tuesday.

“We look to be making the transition sometime in the next couple of weeks or so from the Wayland Preschool which is located behind the Wellness Center to Wayland Elementary,” he said.

The addition will be more convenient for the preschool students and staff and provide an easier transition for preschoolers when they go to kindergarten.

“This allows them to be part of the school more than in the past,” Southard said.

The addition, which cost about $1.5 million, was scheduled to be ready at the start of school in August but issues with workforce and materials delayed the project.

During the summer months, the ATC building’s infrastructure received a major overhaul, Southard said.

He said the older building had not been worked on since it was originally built. This summer a new HVAC was installed as well as new plumbing, sprinkler system and new electric. The restrooms and office suite were remodeled and upgraded and a new exhaust and dust collection system were added to the shops.

“We added different upgrades that were long overdue as we are trying to make that building a little more modern,” Southard said.

This portion of the project at ATC was scheduled for completion at the start of school, and Southard said while most of the work was completed some classes had to be held at the high school while the rooms were fully completed.

Work is also being done at the front of the ATC building to house the Render Center.

Once completed, possibly in January, the Render Center will move from the former Wayland Elementary School building in Hartford to the ATC building. Southard said the center will be isolated and have its own section of the building.

This will allow students who go to the alternative learning program at the Render Center to participate in vocational classes based on a case by case basis, he said.

The project is on schedule and expected to be finished in January.

The final project, which recently got underway, is for an auxiliary gym located behind the middle and high school buildings. That facility will have a full size court, two locker rooms, restrooms. The building will have classrooms for the ROTC program and an area for the wrestling team to train and practice.

Southard said the shell of the building is in place. The roof panels are in and the side panels appeared to be on a semi on-site earlier this week, he said.

Sometime in the next two weeks, Southard suspects the building to begin taking shape with exterior walls and roofing going up.

This project, estimated to cost $4 million, is running a little behind, Southard said, as it was originally supposed to have been completed this month. A delay in obtaining the steel for the project put the project behind schedule.