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Work is going fast at the new Lingleville ISD cafeteria/classroom building with supports visible on Oct. 10 and getting wrapped after more exterior supports and features like the covered entry were installed a week later (in inset provided by Elaine Carpenter). Paul Gaudette | Citizen staff photo
Lingleville ISD Superintendent Curt Haley reported that the construction underway at the school is on schedule despite some unforeseen complications.
The building, once completed, will house a much larger cafeteria to allow for fewer lunch periods (the existing cafeteria only holds about 80 and lunch periods start very early for the youngest grades) and will be available for community events. It will also house new classrooms including labs and new offices and will act as a central entry to the school unifying the two current buildings and increasing security. It will also provide a barrier for the playground and the road.
Earlier this year, a shutdown at a manufacturing plant prompted the delay of materials so the school shifted to another phase of the plan and paving around the building and parking lot.
The area also received 13 inches of rain which halted construction while the grounds dried out. The project was delayed waiting for a transformer and power supply.
The building has taken shape in the past month with the frame and supports installed which have been wrapped in the last week. It is expected that the installation of roofing panels will start this week.
Haley said that the school board was told in the most recent update Thursday night that the building is on schedule for its April completion. The building will be available for use in the 2021-2022 school year after being prepared in the summer.
During Thursday’s board meeting, the board also voted to move the early dismissal set for this Friday to Oct. 30, approach Dannah Procter about remaining as the district’s representative on the Erath County Appraisal District and set Nov. 12 as the date to canvass school board elections.
The meeting also included an executive session for board appraisal and to discuss the school’s COVID precautions/guidelines. Following the meeting, the board discussed setting a site-based meeting about the possibility of ending distance learning for students of the district.