Construction is well on its way at Purdy schools, with crews working to install dual-point entry ways, update classrooms and redesign the school cafeteria.
Superintendent Travis Graham said last week that the high school office, elementary school office and school cafeteria have all been completely gutted, and crews are beginning work to rebuild and replace.
Graham said construction crews are preparing to begin reconstructing the high school office, but discovered a three-inch slope in the floor where the slab of the building had settled. The construction crews offered three solutions, which included pulling the floor up and replacing it, building a leveler, or using a foam riser to eliminate the slope.
He said as much as he would like to see the foam riser in action, that fix would come with a $21,000 price tag.
He has opted to have crews pin the walls and remove the sloping slab and replace it.
“The district isn’t out any money on that repair, because we have seen considerable savings in other areas,” he said.
The elementary school office and cafeteria have been completely gutted, and steel work is slated to begin this week, along with plumbing and electrical work in the cafeteria.
Graham said a make-shift cafeteria has been constructed in the school’s second gym, and the district has been able to continue offering hot meals to students daily.
“The consensus is that it’s working better than we thought it would, but it gets loud in there,” he said.
Purdy voters approved a no-tax increase bond measure in April 2022 that provided the school district with $3 million in funding for school safety improvements, amenities and educational opportunities.
Graham has proposed utilizing the $3 million in bond funding to achieve three specific goals: improving safety, improving infrastructure and increasing educational opportunities at Purdy schools.
A top priority for the district is to utilize the bond funding to construct two-point entry ways at the school’s three main entrances.
The entryways will have visitors to campus entering through two sets of locked doors. Guests who arrive at campus will make contact with school administrators in the front office who will have the ability to buzz them through the first door. Once that door is closed behind the guest, administrators can buzz open the second door, which will open directly into the school office, which will provide directions and credentials for visitors.
The bond is also funding the complete remodel of the school’s kitchen area that will upgrade food service capabilities for all students and improve safety.
Graham has said the school had been operating a cafeteria with equipment that was purchased and installed in the 1960s and 1970s.
He said a totally re-designed cook space will give kitchen staff more flexibility to provide a “cafe style” dining experience at school with more cuisine options each day.
Graham told the school board last week that all construction on campus should be completed by July and the district will begin the 2023-2024 school year in a construction- free campus.
