COBRA COMMUNICATIONS – Craig Schlichting – Superintendent
The light is at the end of the tunnel with our building project and it has gone very well. We have had excellent weather to get the roofing and parking lot done on the outside. The work on the inside of the is also going very well. We have updated our HVAC and much of the plumbing that goes along with that system as well as the ceiling tiles in the hallways which needed to be removed to provide access to work on these systems. All of the project work is scheduled to be completed before the staff arrives at the end of August.
On the outside of the building, we have added a couple of additional areas for parking that I think will be very beneficial. One area is West of the bus garage, this can be used for visiting busses when we have large events that require busses from multiple schools. The other area is a parking space off to the East of the varsity softball field. This will help with parking for spectators in that area. The elementary drop-off area will have a new design when it is repainted to help traffic flow and avoid the congestion. That area has created issues for parents in the past and we want to get that issue resolved. With the roofing part of the project, all areas of our roof will now have fully adhered roofs. This means that we were able to eliminate the rocks on top of the roof that was used to hold down the older bladder-style roof that was used in the past. We have had very good success with these types of roofs and it will be great to have all of our roofing using the updated system. The only thing we are waiting on is the trim pieces around the top, which have been delayed due to the supply of materials availability.
Many schools that have had projects this year have run into supply issues and increased costs for the materials needed for their projects. I am very happy to report that this has not been the case on our project. Other than the trim work for the roof, the only other item that we have had to wait on is two of the chillers that will be installed in the HVAC units. These are both currently scheduled to be completed by the time the school year begins. The learning environment for our students will be all climate controlled. We had a number of areas that did not have air conditioning and it will be nice to have the ability to keep those areas climate controlled. The HVAC system will also be fully ionized. This helps clean the air clean from particulates, microbes, and odors. This is especially helpful to people that suffer from allergies, asthma, and other respiratory ailments.
To have a project this large being completed on time and under budget is a huge relief. I am very happy that we have been able to get all of these upgrades completed to solidify the infrastructure of our facility so that it can continue to serve the district for years to come. Our district is very fortunate to have such nice facilities that serve the needs of our communities.
Please reach out to me with any questions that you may have regarding our school district. You can email me at schlich@triton.k12.mn.us or you can call me at 507-418-7530 to reach me at the district office. I would be happy to set up a time to meet with you or your organization. I believe that communication is an important aspect of my job responsibility, and I welcome the opportunity to learn from your perspective. GO COBRAS!
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