19/Jul/2007
Construction Progress Report
First Class Facilities Coming Soon To Louisiana’s Top School District
By Adonica Duggan
Zachary Community Schools
When the new independent school
board took control of the four Zachary schools on July 1, 2003, the facilities
reflected years of neglect.
Volunteers worked hard to get the
schools in condition for the first school year which was just a little more
than a month away, but the school system was immediately faced with questions
regarding their ability to accommodate the overcrowding as well as the
anticipated future growth.
The board immediately formed a committee and hired CSRS, Inc. to develop a plan for the facilities. In March 2004 voters approved an initial $39 million bond issue to support construction. It’s hard to believe it’s only been three years, but they’ve been packed full of activity. This summer, construction is in full swing as several projects are moved along rapidly to prepare for the start of school in August.
Zachary High School
Anyone who has driven down Church Street can tell you there’s a lot going on at Zachary High. A new classroom addition including 14 classrooms, a new front office administrative area, computer labs and two new science labs will be completed for the fall. The addition will add 35,000 square feet of much needed space to the high school. Existing science labs and other areas of the existing school will receive improvements and the existing administration area is being renovated into a special education center.
This summer every classroom will receive a fresh coat of paint, new carpeting, and all of the ceiling tiles will be replaced. Also in the works is a new 16,000 square foot state-of-the-art industrial arts facility that will contain classrooms and shop spaces for various alternative curricula. The space will house a new woodshop program and agriculture and welding students.
The other main project at the high school will be evident come football season. Zachary High will tower above the competition on an impressive new field sporting artificial turf. The track will also be upgraded from cinder to a synthetic surface and expanded to include eight lanes. This new surface is the first of its kind in the nation. The stadium will be expanded to add an additional 800 seats to the home section and will also include some ADA improvements.
New Computer Labs
Other summer projects at the high school include a renovation that will create new computer labs in the library. It’s been a busy summer on Bronco Lane, but the high school isn’t the only game in town.
Just up the street, the new middle school is quietly taking shape. The worst of the original facilities taken over by the Zachary Community School Board, the middle school is being completely rebuilt onsite. The bulk of the original school will be demolished once the new facility is complete.
Only the existing gym and auditorium will remain, and these facilities will be renovated before being put to use.
State of the Art
The new middle school will be 105,000 square feet and it is scheduled for completion this fall. The school is being built to house 1,000 students.
When completed the state-of-the-art facility will feature two gyms, a performing arts theater and new band room.
Last fall saw the opening of the first new school in Zachary
in quite some time with Copper Mill, but that construction was only the tip of
the iceberg in a comprehensive plan that is designed to provide students with
facilities befitting the number one school district in the state.
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