Since the start of the 2023 school year, KHS has been undergoing a number of construction projects, some of which are interfering with students’ daily lives. Previously, there has not been a clear or accurate response on specific dates and timelines for project completion, mainly due to unforeseen delays. But as of right now, the construction teams and district staff have an estimated timeline for precise completion from now until winter break. Here are the most recent updates of the construction that is taking place.
The new building that will contain the latest FACS and engineering classrooms will open on Dec. 1. The process of moving in will not start until that time and will take up the majority of Dec. If finished on time, the rooms will be available next semester.
Concrete is being poured for the sidewalks outside the new FACS building. Pouring asphalt for the new parking lot will also start and be completed sometime in early Nov. Also, on Nov. 13, the area that connects the English and Math hall will be completed and available to use.
The canopy outside of the Welcome Center only needs to install lights and metal panels on one more side. It is estimated to be completed by the middle of Nov. The landscaping in the dirt area outside of the Welcome Center has also recently been finished.
The punch list occurred on Oct. 31. This means the construction team, architects and district staff walked through and reviewed the new FACS building and other construction areas to make sure that everything was going as planned. After this process, there are typically a few minor details to correct.
One of the main reasons for some construction projects taking longer than expected is the delay in getting all of the materials on time. Also, other smaller issues came up, resulting in delays, including glass panels not being cut correctly and the recommendation to put in a sturdier railing in the Math and English hall connection area.
The two upper athletic fields, the ones closest to the school, are hoped to be completed and ready for use around the end of Nov. or the beginning of Dec., although it is not a set date. The lower fields that are becoming the baseball and softball complex are predicted to be completed around the middle or end of Jan.
Although there has not been any major delays since the construction of the athletic fields have started, Mr. Corey Nesslage, the athletic director at KHS, said there was a wait as to when the project actually was able to begin.
“We were hoping that you would actually see dirt being moved [on the athletic fields] by the end of June,” Nesslage said. “That didn’t happen until the middle of August.”
The delay is said to have occurred because the construction of putting down a permanent surface, in this case turf, needed to be approved first by the Metro Sewer District (MSD) as it relates to civil engineering.
According to Nesslage, the projects regarding the athletic fields had gained a lot of momentum within the Kirkwood community due to instances where the rainy weather had affected the natural surface fields.
“Because of the rain, there were many days when the spring season would start that we would have track and field in the stadium, girls’ lacrosse in the stadium and girls’ soccer in the stadium,” Nesslage said. “In my eleven years here, there was always that wish and hope that we could do this project.”
