Day 252

Friday, March 5th was the big moving day. Grade 5, Grade 5/6, Grade 6, and Grade 7/8 all moved into the new classrooms. By the end of the day, the new classroom wing looked like the rest of the school - just the hallway looks longer. The portable classrooms are vacant and will be towed away once cleaned.

There is no access beyond the classrooms at this time as the final touches are being applied and deficiencies corrected. The floor of the multipurpose auditorium will not be fully cured until the end of March so no shoes are permitted in the meantime.

The renovation of Mr. Baetz' old Grade 6 classroom into a resource annex has started already so I will continue to post blogs related to the construction.

The long hallway

Mr. Letkeman's new Grade 5/6 classroom

Mrs. Luma's new Grade 5 classroom

Mr. Baetz' new Grade 6 classoom

Ms. Anholts' new Grade 5/6 classroom

The lines are painted on the floor of the multipurpose auditorium

New offices for David, Candace, Leah and Shauna

The Fast Forward room and Mr. Baetz' classroom are being renovated into a resource annex

Day 240

The classrooms are complete. And I do mean complete. The projectors are installed along with the sound assist systems and our cleaning crew has made the rooms sparkle!

The carpeting has been installed in the office area and the phone system is working like a charm. The floor in the auditorium has been poured but is going to take longer than planned to cure. This means that only "stocking feet" will be allowed for a while.

The fine arts area is the last area to receive attention as the crew literally works it way out of the building. But even here, the change is dramatic. The stage curtains have been hung, the floor is pretty much complete and the sinks are ready to be installed.

The railings have all been installed at the entrances and the ceramic tile in the bootroom looks great.

The pre-occupancy inspection is scheduled for this coming Thursday so we should be ready to go for the Celebration Dinner & Ribbon Cutting on Saturday.

A completed classroom

Carpet in the new offices

Check out the shine on the floor of the auditorium

A view of the stage with the railing in the foreground

The fine arts area with curtains hanging

Day 232

As we enter the final stretch of the construction, the changes are obvious and fast. It is amazing how quickly the new part of the school is starting to feel like the original building. The tile in the classrooms is almost done and the hallway is complete, right down to the colored accent tiles we used in the main part of the school. The tiling is being done in the storage rooms adjacent to the auditorium today because the Pulastic floor of the auditorium is getting poured tomorrow. This needs to be done sooner rather than later because it will take about 2 weeks to cure.

Colin de Rooy is terminating the voice and data connections throughout the expansion while other workers are painting the ductwork and railings and hanging blinds. The place is a beehive of activity but everyone seems to know what they're supposed to be doing. For my part, I just try to stay out of their way!




VCT tile in the classroom hallway

A completed floor in a classroom

Painted ductwork in the ceiling

Day 226

And on the 226th day there was heat...

The boiler is on and functioning so well that the 1st 2 classrooms are 80 degrees! This is on purpose so that the flooring can get underway. The linoleum tiling in the classrooms will get started this Tuesday and the classroom hallway should be done shortly after that. Final painting is underway in the auditorium and we are awaiting sinks for the fine arts room. Even the metal cladding has been installed on the outside west wall.

Railing on the ramp in the auditorium

Metal cladding on the western wall of the expansion

Day 219

I know I added a post only 4 days ago but there have been some dramatic changes inside the expansion. First of all, there are lights in every single room and...they actually work! The countertops have been installed in the classrooms while the cabinets in the Fine Arts Room are almost complete. A lot of progress has been made with the plumbing for the heated floors. Check out these pictures now that there is light!




Cabinets in one of the classrooms



The glass inserts are in the main entrance doorway



The HVAC unit suspended off the floor



Cabinets in the Fine Arts Room



Lights in the Auditorium



Plumbing for the heated floors

Day 215

Finishing touches to the mechanical and electrical continue throughout. Painting in the remaining area of the fine arts room is almost complete. Strapping to the outside west wall is in place in preparation for the metal cladding that will be used here.

Cabinetry in the classrooms is almost complete

Heating ducts in the auditorium

MDF panels in the auditorium to protect the walls

The boiler that will be used to provide the in-floor heat to the expansion

Strapping on the outside wall for mounting the metal cladding

Day 204

The cabinetry is now being installed in the classrooms. The ceiling tiles are being put in around the perimeter of the classrooms and hallway leaving room for the finishing electrical and mechanical work. Final coats of drywall mud have been applied to the auditorium and the air is filled with drywall dust from all the sanding. Most of the exterior doors now have locks on them and the exterior pot lights are installed in the soffit.




Classroom cubbies



Storage cabinets at the back of a classroom



The auditorium is almost ready for primer




Heating ducts in the fine arts room

Ceiling tiles along the hallway

Exterior pot lights in the soffit

Day 196

Although I have been checking out the progress of construction and taking photos regularly since my last post, I see that with the Christmas break I have been quite delinquent in keeping the blog up-to-date.

This entry should help to catch everybody up on how things look right now:

• The classrooms are completely painted and the T-bar for the suspended ceiling is complete.
• The classroom hallway is also painted and the T-bar for the ceiling should be complete shortly.
• The offices and reception area are painted.
• Wiring for electrical, voice and data has been pulled to all areas of the expansion with subpanels starting to show up in the appropriate locations.
• Drywall in the fine arts room and the multipurpose auditorium is hung so the rest of the board should be hung by the end of the day tomorrow. Mudding, taping and sanding is progressing at a fast pace. Insulation is complete with the final section being blown into the ceiling over the auditorium today.
• Steel I-beams have been installed in the mechanical area on the south side of the auditorium. These will be used to suspend the 2 pieces of HVAC equipment that have been moved from the floor of the auditorium into this room that will be their final resting spot.
• The folding door system between the fine arts room and auditorium has been installed

Subpanel in the Electrical Room across from the office area



Feed line used for blowing in the insulation in the ceiling space over the auditorium



1 of 2 I-beams that will be used to suspend HVAC equipment



Moving the HVAC equipment into the mechanical room next to the auditorium

Taping the drywall in the auditorium

Completed T-bar for the suspended ceiling in a classroom