One common feature of the summer break is repair/upgrading of the school facilities in the district.  The empty campuses provide a clear working environment for construction crews and maintenance workers who otherwise might create chaos during the school year.  This summer, construction is even busier than usual, as the new elementary school project is fully underway, and several improvements to existing structures have also been needed.

School District 351 Superintendent Jon Abrams is overall quite happy with the progress made so far on the many ongoing projects.  According to Abrams, they will be pouring footings at the elementary school this week, which will clearly signal the forward momentum of the building project. In addition to the building itself, they are also installing the newer playground equipment for the current elementary behind the school. As Abrams notes, “It feels like a slow process, but they are making great strides.”

The school is slated for construction during the upcoming school year, but the hope is that the disruption to the attending students will be able to be minimized.  Abrams has acknowledged all along, however, that the year itself will come with a certain amount of unavoidable chaos as the construction will take place quite literally right outside the windows of the current school.

The high school has also had some changes over the summer.  “We have a new bus drop-off /pick-up between the middle school and the high school. This will alleviate the congestion in the front of the school before and after school,” Abrams said. The project has been on the burner for some time, and he expressed excitement at having that particular project completed.  The resulting improved traffic flow should help during the normal end of school-day operations, as well as those times when athletic events overlap with open school hours.

The school district has also “completely re-paved the east side of the high school parking lot right up to the football field. The lines are painted, and its ready to go. It looks fantastic!” Abrams said.

Abrams also discussed several replacement/repair issues.  “We have new roofs on the middle school, part of a high school that was not previously replaced, and Stone Elementary,” he said.

The bond that allowed for the construction of the school also provided for new softball and baseball diamonds across from Malad High School.  “Bids are out for the groundwork for the softball and baseball diamonds. We're looking forward to getting a good start soon. We are probably a year out from being able to use the new fields for spring baseball and softball,” Abrams stated.  

Even though some aspects of the summer passed by in a fairly leisurely way, construction itself has been nonstop.  “It has been a very busy summer, but we are very pleased with the progress being made,” Abrams concluded.  We hope to speak with him in the coming months for further updates on the progress of the range of projects that are currently underway, and those set to begin soon.

Through the efforts of Bracken Degn, Mike Hess, Jr., and Jean Thomas, the Enterprise was able to obtain some aerial drone shots of the ongoing construction.  The paper hopes to continue to update the community on progress on the school every few weeks as milestones are reached and progress becomes visible.  From the ground level, the scope of the project can be somewhat hard to comprehend, but from above its clearer both how much material is being moved and built and what the kind of space the final project will occupy.  The included images show the footings for the building as they are laid out, as well as progress on the surrounding areas of the construction site. 

Construction is expected to continue over the course of roughly a year, with everyone’s hopes including a potential for next year’s class of students to start the year in their new facility.