Mike Wolanin | The Republic Greg Ferguson, manager of projects for Bartholomew Consolidated School Corporation, leads guests on a tour pf the renovations at Parkside Elementary School in Columbus, Ind., Monday, June 13, 2023.
Renovations are continuing at Parkside Elementary, with members of the Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. board touring the building Monday night to see how things are progressing.
The third and fourth phases of the 10-phase project are expected to be complete before the first day of school, which is Aug. 3, said BCSC project manager Greg Ferguson. He said that the project is going “fairly smoothly.”
“It’s just a lot of work, trying to navigate keeping an active school and an active construction site at the same time,” he said.
Phase 3, which is almost complete, will include second and third grade classrooms, an emotional wellness office, two activity common spaces and a STEM lab. Phase 4 includes work on the main office area and cafeteria.
“The main office has been demo’d, and that’s kind of where they’re at with it,” said Ferguson. “They’re getting a new reception counter when they come in, just for sight lines, kind of helps with the security and sight lines. So they’re moving a few things around inside the office. Nurse’s office is in there as well, getting some new flooring and some cabinetry, laying it out a little bit better for use.”
In the cafeteria, a stage on the west side of the space has been removed to accommodate more seating, and windows are being cut into the walls on the west end. There will also be new flooring.
The school’s new kindergarten and sixth grade wings were completed earlier this year, with students able to move into the remodeled spaces after spring break.
Ferguson said that new furniture for all of the completed phases will be delivered in July.
BCSC Director of Operations Brett Boezeman said in November that the Parkside project marks “the first of hopefully several renovations to our buildings in BCSC.”
Interior work began in October. The renovations include a new STEM lab, large group instruction areas, dedicated mental health spaces and single lockable restrooms. There are also plans for classrooms to feature more natural light, flooring, cabinetry and windows. At the same time, significant architectural features, such as existing interior beams, will be preserved.
BCSC officials have said that there are also plans for exterior changes as well, including an expansion of the west parking lot, a new drive to improve parent pick-up and drop off, resurfacing work, sidewalk replacements, and a new gated bus pickup and drop-off lot that can also double as a hard surface play area and event parking.
Ferguson said that contractors are doing prep work on the bus lot on the school’s north side, which will also provide hardscape and basketball courts for students during the day.
“The other thing on the exterior part of the work that’s going on right now would be the hydronic piping, which is the exterior trenches that are going around the building, that the HVAC piping’s in,” he said. “As people may notice … the trees have come down because they’re in the way of the piping going, but then the trees will be going back in. I’m sure we’ll get some onions in the paper about the trees being gone at Parkside, but trust me, there will be just as many or more trees.”
When asked if there have been any hiccups during the project, Ferguson said that there were a few mechanical units that did not arrive on time. This means that some of the work planned for this summer will occur next summer.
“Other than that, it’s not been too awful chaotic, as far as equipment or materials coming in,” he said. “Everything’s been coming in fairly decently, besides a few pieces of equipment we’ve had to kind of juggle the schedule around a little bit and adjust.”
He said that the project is estimated to cost $16 million and be fully completed by fall of 2024, hopefully in time for the start of the 2024-25 school year.
