IRON COUNTY – After a bond resolution that passed last summer, the Iron County School District has three schools under construction and significant progress is expected by the beginning of the school year.

Paul Maggio, director of secondary education, also oversees new building construction. He said the district tried to stagger the projects, beginning Parowan High School shortly after the bond resolution passed last summer, and starting Cedar High School last spring and East Elementary this summer.

Parowan High School

Parowan High School is the biggest of the three projects, followed by Cedar High School. The center section of the school, which was the original building, was removed and a new portion has been built in its place.

Maggio said the historical aspect was important, and since renovating the old building would have been cost prohibitive, they replicated it as closely as possible. The demolition was a little tricky, with buildings attached on either side and asbestos abatement required.

They preserved elements including pre-cast concrete owls and inlaid concrete block with the name of the school and the year the historic portion was constructed. About 20 concrete blocks that went around the doorway were also saved and were able to be reused. They replicated the rest of the exterior as closely as possible, even having brick made to match the old brick, he said.

Superintendent Jim Johnson said the district is very happy with the appearance of the building, and he feels they have met the community’s desires for the project.

“That’s turned out beyond our expectations,” he said.

Maggio said the new construction is expected to be completed by January, and ready for move-in. The offices will be in that portion of the school, and it will be the main entrance to the building, as was originally intended.

Once the faculty, staff and students are moved into their new space, remodeling will begin on other portions of the school.

With the new addition, there will be a main hallway extending from the north to the south end of the school, and the Americans with Disabilities Act compliance issues will be corrected.

“Now everything is accessible,” Maggio said.

The new portion will also include new art and ceramics rooms, a new Family and Consumer Science space, two computer labs, an EdNet lab, a new auxiliary gym, a weight room, classrooms, and a multi-purpose room.

Cedar High School

The Cedar High School project includes an addition on the south end of the school, a remodel of other areas in the school, and parking lot work. This summer has seen significant work in the large south parking lot, as 318 holes 300 feet deep have been drilled into the earth, Maggio said.

The drilling is to provide geothermal heating and cooling to the school. CHS will be the fourth school in the district to get geothermal, which has a high initial cost, but is worth it.

“It’s so efficient,” Maggio said. “It pays for itself in about 10 years. It’s very cost effective.”

The district first used geothermal in Canyon View High School, and has since put it into Iron Springs Elementary and Three Peaks Elementary.

“It’s been very successful,” he said.

Geothermal is not always cost effective, but when constructing new buildings or large additions it is usually worth it, he said.

Maggio said the geothermal system is complex, with more than 37 miles of tubing, but it is low-maintenance.

That aspect of the project is completed, and crews are working to get the parking put back in. He said they have pushed hard to get the parking lot completed before school starts in a couple weeks.

Some difficult rock slowed down the drilling and made the project take longer than anticipated, but they are still hopeful the lot will be finished in time. If not, at least part of it will be paved and striped, and the rest will be finished shortly after school starts, he said.

Another big change outside the school that has taken place this summer is the repaving of the “circle” and the moving of part of it. The half-circle parking lot and driveway on the north side of the school now has its entrance from the west and will be used only for bus pick-up and drop-off.

A new faculty parking lot is being constructed northwest of the large south parking lot.

Maggio said they are looking to have the new part of the building open by fall 2010, and start remodeling other inside areas then. The new portion will include offices, a new band room, and more. The old offices will be made into classrooms, and the old band room will accommodate orchestra and choir.

The new part of the building will be the front of the school.

East Elementary

The East Elementary project is the smallest taking place right now, with the extension of one hallway to add four rooms and some electrical and water pressure work.

Maggio said the electrical upgrade will be a big help, as the school was having problems in that area. Plugging in a fan could throw a breaker.

“East was just kind of tapped out,” he said.

The work that has been done this summer will fix those problems, as well as the water pressure issues. A new water line has been brought in under the road, and meets the standard for fire safety. There has also been a line installed branching off that to feed the rest of the school and improve the indoor water pressure, Maggio said.

The extension of the school’s north hallway will add four rooms – three classrooms and a computer lab. Another room in the school that has been made into a make-shift computer lab will be turned back into a classroom.

East Elementary currently has a capacity of about 500 students, and this addition will take that number to about 600, in line with the other elementary schools in the district.

Maggio said the district hopes to see the East Elementary project completed this year, before January.

Hughes Construction, of North Salt Lake City, is the construction manager on all three jobs, and all three site supervisors are Cedar City residents, Maggio said.