Spring Lake Park High School is a lot more of a school and much less of a mess this year than last.
As the capstone of the school district's mammoth renovation project that left no school untouched, the building is largely finished as school starts this week.
"It basically was four summers and three school years that we have had construction going on in here," said Superintendent Don Helmstetter, guiding a tour of the newly renovated facility, still buzzing with workers last week.
Many of the remaining tasks -- reflected in rolls of matted turf stacked outside; restrooms not yet marked as such; painting and trim work -- were slated for completion by today, when all students will have reported for class. More substantial work remains on a wing of the school that will be devoted largely to community use. That's supposed to be finished by Monday.
The fruits of all the construction work include an entire new two-story school section, new arts and sports wing, new windows, re-tiled floors, new lockers and floors, and a spacious, well-lighted rotunda that serves as the main entry into the school.
Helmstetter said having a well-lit school is a priority among teachers and parents. So is security. There are two tiers of glass doors leading into the rotunda. The outside tier will remain open during school hours, but the inside one will be locked. That way, visitors will be funneled through another doorway into the office before they can enter the school.
A smattering of students and teachers were at school last Wednesday. Most were happy the hassles of living in a construction zone would finally be ending.
"I'm so excited that the kids will finally reap the benefits of all they had to go through last year," said Wendy Hatchner, who teaches German and Spanish. Much of what they had to go through involved clomping through the muck outside the school and having to walk through a makeshift covered walkway that kept the students dry, but not necessarily warm.
