Whitefish High School construction: Out with the old...
HILARY MATHESON | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 11 years, 8 months AGO
<p><span><strong>An excavator</strong> tears down the A wing of Whitefish High School on Thursday morning in Whitefish. </span></p>
<p><strong>A worker</strong> continues construction on the new building in the background as the A wing of Whitefish High School is demolished on Thursday.</p><div> </div>
EDUCATION REPORTER Hilary Matheson covers education for the Daily Inter Lake. Her reporting focuses on schools, students, and the policies that shape public education across Northwest Montana. Matheson regularly reports on school boards, district decisions and issues affecting teachers and families. Her work examines how funding, enrollment and state policy influence local school systems. She helps readers understand how education decisions affect students and communities throughout the region. IMPACT: Hilary’s work provides transparency and insight into the schools that serve thousands of local families. | July 19, 2014 9:00 PM
Demolition of the former A wing made considerable progress last week as construction continues at Whitefish High School.
The week kicked off with demolition of the shipping and receiving building.
“They mobilized in here Monday,” said Project Manager Dow Powell. “They started on Tuesday because we’re getting the site work done for the parking on the north side of the school.”
Excavators began pulling ironwork off the facade of the A wing and taking down walls Wednesday.
The C wing is also slated for demolition. Demolition should be finished over the next two to three weeks.
“It’s not going to go away in one day. This is three days worth of work right here,” Powell said pointing to rubble from the demolished shipping, receiving and storage buildings.
Meanwhile, the new building is close to completion.
“This is the last wall that needs to be painted,” Powell said pointing to the front entrance of the new building.
Powell said construction is on schedule. Inside the new building, dining chairs and tables sit, wrapped in plastic. Gone are the mobile, fold-up tables. The space is more reminiscent of a college dining hall than a high school cafeteria.
Boxes of teachers’ classroom supplies from the old building are stored in the new classrooms, ready to be unpacked. Powell said teachers can start organizing their classrooms in the second week of August.
Upstairs, the library is move-in ready. Books have been carefully organized in wooden shelving, ready for students to check out when school starts Sept. 2.
“It is all coming together,” Powell said.
While the school enters the 21st century, there are small architectural details from the school’s cherished past that still remain. Bleachers from the old gym, for instance, have been salvaged and installed as wainscoting along one wall by what will be a school cafe.
A tour of the new building is scheduled for 7 to 8:30 p.m. July 22.
Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or by email at [email protected].
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