New Earle elementary school construction underway

New Earle elementary school construction underway

Work starts on new K- 6 facility with sights set on completion by 2019- 2020 school year

news@theeveningtimes.com Construction work on a new $7 million, 40,000-square-foot elementary school has begun in Earle.

Nathan Anthony of Nabholz Construction gave an update of the timeline to the City Council and said they have started to strip off the topsoil to prepare the building pad.

“Our main goal this summer would be to get all of the dirt work done,” Anthony said. “Obviously a lot of that is weather contingent. So we are hoping for some dry weather.”

Voters approved a 10 mil increase last year to fund the project. The old building was built in the 1950s and has reached the end of its usefulness. The new structure will put students under one roof. The current campus has several outbuildings and requires students to go outside to get to some classes.

The elementary school will have 18 classrooms, computer lab, media lab, art and music rooms, and office space for school staff.

Plans call for demolition of the existing school and several outbuildings.

The district will keep the gymnasium and the cafeteria.

Councilwoman Jimmie Barham asked whether the plans call for an enclosed walkway to the cafeteria. “They won’t have to be outside for their lunch?”

Barham queried.

“No, ma’am,” Anthony replied. “If you walk through the doors at the new entrance and walk straight to the back, that connects to the cafeteria.

So as long as they are in the building, they won’t have to walk through the elements.”

Barham said that is a big improvement from the current

design.

“That’s wonderful because we have been out in the weather for years,” Barham said.

Councilman Kenneth Cross asked if the design included a covered walkway connecting to the detached gymnasium.

“We don’t want to have to get wet,” Cross said.

Anthony said there is nothing in the designs to enclose the gym.

“At this time, no,” Anthony

said.”

Superintendent Richard Wilde said the design calls for a U-shaped building with two wings in the back that does enclose the cafeteria, but not the gym.

However, Wilde noted that the district did include contingency funds which could be used to build a covered walkway to the gym if there is money left over.

“It depends on where we are for the contingents,” Wilde said. “If everything goes well, that may be a possibility.”

Wilde added that the distance the children have to walk to the gym is shorter than they used to have to walk to get to the cafeteria.

“So if anything, if they get wet, they will get wet much less in this design,” Wilde said. “And they don’t have to go out for the cafeteria.

That right there is an improvement over what we

have.”

Anthony said the target is to have the school completed in July 2019.

“If we can be done with

the ground by the time school starts again we should be in good shape,”

Anthony said.

By Mark Randall