Date: Fri 28-Feb-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: DOTTIE

Quick Words:

schools-construction

Full Text:

School Construction `Going Great' At Newtown High And Hawley

B Y D OROTHY E VANS

Thank goodness, the weather has cooperated.

The lack of heavy snowfall during the winter of 1996-97 has been the best news

possible for Newtown Building and Site Commission Chairman Frank Krasnickas.

Mr Krasnickas was keeping one eye on the sky and crossing fingers on both

hands that the trend would continue as he prepared Tuesday for a job update

and report to school administrators about progress at Newtown High and Hawley

School.

You could almost hear the sigh of relief as Mr Krasnickas said, "Both roofs

are on, and they're finishing up the edges now. We're in the last stages."

"Things are going great," he added.

At both sites, large sheets of plastic that envelope parts of the new

buildings billow in the breeze, perhaps expanding in an outward direction from

pressure within the partially heated interiors.

The plastic coverings have been placed in areas where the structures are not

yet completely tight to the weather, Mr Krasnickas explained, because newly

poured concrete and masonry needs to be protected from freezing temperatures

in order to set correctly.

High School Addition

At Newtown High School, the schedule has gone smoothly all along.

Windows are being installed and duct work, plumbing and electrical work is

proceeding nicely inside the $25-million, 74,000-square-foot, three-story

addition at the north end of the school.

"We're installing hot water heaters and other mechanical equipment inside the

addition now," Mr Krasnickas said.

A large flatbed truck had just arrived Tuesday morning loaded down with

several massive air conditioning units.

To an outside observer, the high school addition appears to be totally

enclosed now with all window openings completed. However, its connection to

the main building at the north side is not in evidence yet.

"We've been backfilling the area in between, getting ready to construct the

connecting corridor," Mr Krasnickas said.

The passageway will be on a level with the existing main floor of both

buildings, he said, and is scheduled for completion later in the spring.

Break Through

The two-story gymnasium addition being constructed at the back of the high

school and adjacent to the existing gym and pool balcony, looks nearly

finished when viewed from the outside parking lot.

Mr Krasnickas noted that the masonry on the gymnasium walls "matches nicely"

with the existing brick work on the main building.

"Workers are ready to break through from the lower locker rooms in the

existing building," he added.

This project includes renovation to all the existing locker rooms. The

addition will house a physical education station on the main level and team

rooms on the lower level.

Renovations planned for the locker and team dressing areas for both men and

women are seen as important steps toward bringing parity to both sports

programs.

Hawley Catching Up

"The Hawley project, which started off slow, is coming right along," Mr

Krasnickas said.

The underground slab is poured and the cinder block walls of the gymnasium are

now up, he said, as well as some of the brick work being added.

"The weather has been ideal," Mr Krasnickas repeated.

This circumstance was especially lucky considering that the construction

schedule at Hawley has been called "extremely tight" by project architect

Rusty Malik of Kaestle Boos.

For Mr Malik, the term "slow start" doesn't nearly describe the series of

delays and frustrations he experienced as the project schedule was set back

nearly three months at the outset.

Thanks to a combination of Mr Malik's insistence, oversight by O&G Industries

and renewed efforts by the contractor ACMAT, Inc, and its sub-contractors, the

Hawley project is back on schedule.

But there is little room to spare at the finishing end.

Mr Malik told Board of Education members at a recent meeting that current

schedules call for completion of the $4-million, 22,000-square-foot Hawley

addition by June 18. Completion of renovations to the existing building are

set for August 20.

Mr Malik targeted installation of new windows in the existing building and

availability of the Hawley parking lot to teachers at the end of July as being

two critical areas he was watching carefully.

"The teaching space will be available to you by September," he promised, but

he was concerned about access by teachers and delivery of supplies through the

parking lot near the new addition should paving work scheduled for the last

week in July not be completed.

Superintendent of Schools John Reed commented at the same board meeting that

he feels "confident they'll make it."

"Opening school after Labor Day will help," Dr Reed said, especially

considering the "immense amount of renovation" needed to the existing Hawley

building, the oldest section of which dates back to 1922.

In March, Dr Reed plans to meet with Sandy Hook parents concerning the planned

redistricting and transfer of approximately 150 children in grades K-5 at

Sandy Hook School to the newly expanded Hawley School by the beginning of

school in September.