Mt. Pleasant renovation work behind schedule

Mt. Pleasant Area School District officials are not happy with the pace of renovation work at the district's secondary facility, but they say construction delays will not postpone the opening of the school year.

With more than 1,300 students in grades 7-12 scheduled to begin classes at the school on Aug. 27, district Superintendent Regis Murtha said this week, 'We're on schedule with Phase I, which is to be finished by Dec.1, but we're three to four weeks behind on Phase II.'

Murtha explained Phase I includes a 10-classroom addition at the front of the school and renovations to about a dozen existing classrooms, while Phase II - which it was hoped would be finished by the end of August - includes work on the school's swimming pool, senior high gymnasium, adjoining locker rooms and three computer-aided design classrooms.

Murtha acknowledged there have been some questions from both parents and school directors about the status of the $19.8 million renovation project that began in May and is scheduled to be completed by August 2003.

Part of that concern arose when project construction manager Byron Horner of Foreman Program and Construction Managers told school directors in June that the project was several weeks behind after less than two months on the job.

Also, as travelers pass by the school it appears almost half of the building is gutted with only a few weeks before the term is to begin.

But Murtha said, 'It's not as bad as it may appear.'

Murtha said the district also has penalties designated in the construction contracts for excessive delays, but he said he hopes those won't have to be implemented. There is also a contingency plan in place if Phase II remains behind schedule.

For example, classes that would normally be held in the senior high gym will be conducted either outdoors for the first few weeks of school or in the junior high gym, auxiliary gym or field house. Girls will use the junior high gym lockers to change for physical education classes, while boys will be assigned to use the field house.

High school Principal Michael Picarsic said computer-aided design students will not miss a beat as the CAD software will be installed on the computers in the library computer lab, and some senior high industrial arts classes will be held in the junior high shop rooms.

All study halls will be assigned to the auditorium to allow every available classroom to be utilized.

'We'll have the same number of homerooms,' Picarsic said. 'They'll just be in different places.'

While traffic patterns will remain similar to those used at the end of the last school term, Picarsic said all buses will load and unload at the west or junior high side of the building.

'Student driving is not recommended because we will obviously have limited parking,' Picarsic said.

Plans are also being made to accommodate parking for football fans who plan to attend Viking games at the stadium behind the school. Those will be announced at a later date.

Both Murtha and Picarsic acknowledged there will be some inconvenience for students and staff.

'The school will be more noisy and dirtier than normal, but we will try to limit those elements,' Picarsic said.

'As far as the program for students goes, they will be changing classes more,' Murtha said, 'but the important thing is that the subject content of the classes will still be covered.'