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The Lansing Central School District has accepted bids for capital improvements at all three schools.  Last week the Board of Education got a rundown of planned improvements  and how the construction will impact summer programs and building use into next school year.  Vice President of Operations for Construction Associates Peter Marsenison, the construction manager for the project, said that most of the work will be completed over the summer, but some elements like new choral and special education rooms, and a Large Group Instructional (LGI) room at the high school may not be completed until half way through next school year.

"One of the things that we tried to tackle was to see if we could get that addition completely done in eight weeks," Marsenison said. "It's not going to happen.  We had to be realistic about how many people you could put into a five or six thousand square foot space.  However, the prime contractors have agreed that the addition had to be dried in.  All the footings will be done, all the structural steel will be done.  There will be a roof on it.  We probably will not have windows in it.  With that being dried in we'll be able to work on the interior.  We'll be able to start putting in duct work, electrical work... that will start as soon as we get it dried in.  We're giving them eight weeks to get it dried in, and I think that's obtainable, but it's going to take at least two or three months after school starts to get the finishes done.  Once we get the foundations and steel done on the addition we'll start finishing the LGI so you should have that by the first of the school year, in September."

Work on the LGI will include removal of asbestos, and new flooring and paint.  that room will provide a temporary entrance for construction workers to access the new choral and special education rooms that will be built in  a portion of what is now a courtyard enclosed by the High School.

Marsenison stressed that construction workers will be required to wear ID badges, and will be briefed on being responsive to school staff who ask them to identify themselves.  The temporary entry will minimize their need to be in other areas of the school once the summer work is completed.

Some work will be done to the front office in the Middle School, but the main focus will be on the second floor science classroom area.  That section will be completely gutted and renovated, resulting in a bigger classroom, and two offices.

The most visible work at the Elementary School will be the construction of a new outdoor shade structure, but quite a bit of work is scheduled inside the building.  A new entry vestibule will be added to the district office on the south end of the building.

"Six classrooms are having unit ventilators replaced," said Marsenison. "The district Office entry is going to be completely revamped so that you will have a nice vestibule for people to come in, and you're not getting the weather in to flood the ladies that are sitting up front.  Just about every single door to every single classroom is going to have glass replaced, and metal trim around the glass to make them more secure.  Almost every receptacle and light switch will be replaced."

Work on gymnasiums, including a new partition in the Middle School gym, and major work on the floor of the Elementary school gymnasium will impact all the schools.

"The entire (Elementary School) gymnasium area will be off limits all summer long,".  It's going to take all summer to completely refinish the whole floor.  it is going to be sanded down to the original wood.  All the markings will be laid out and properly painted.  The finishing alone will probably take two weeks.  It will be ready at the first of the school year."

Between construction work and electrical work that will mean no power for a chunk of the summer, summer programs, notably those run by the Lansing Recreation Department, will be significantly impacted.

"We have spent a significant amount of time with Steve Colt, because this is a huge spot for our summer programming," said Superintendent Chris Pettograsso. "Despite all the work I think we'll be able to shift and move and manage to get everything done.  The one thing we're still struggling with is our pool.  The pool is in great shape, but the power will be out for a significant amount of time.  We need the power to be able to use the pool."

"We'll be meeting with the principals to talk about the impact on their buildings," Pettograsso continued. "With asbestos removal and a lot of electric work things will be powered down for the summer.  The partition in the middle school is also being worked on, so the gym space in all the buildings will not be accessible.  We will have a thorough outline of what's available for our faculty and staff.  There are some offices moving."

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