Construction in full swing at BB High School
BROKEN BOW- Even though students have not been in school at Broken Bow High School since the middle of March, the school has been anything but quiet with several different construction projects the school has undertaken over the summer.
The big one on the top of everybody’s mind is the track. It was voted on back in May by the school board to go ahead and redo it, due to the significant amounts of repairs needed to be done to the asphalt.
“Our track got to a point where it’s in pretty rough shape and safety hazards were going to start coming up,” Superintendent Darren Tobey said.
Trees were taken out along the north in June and the asphalt for the new track is set to be poured in the middle of July.
At this point, the track needs to be moved 12 inches to 16 inches to the east to put distance between the outside lane and the grandstand on the west. The new color for the track will be red, a nice touch and flair to make it stand out.
It will be one of the nicest tracks in the area and on this edge of the state once it’s completed.
The track remodel will done by Fisher Tracks out of Iowa. In total the entire cost of the undertaking is around $600,000.
Inside the school, Broken Bow was having significant problems with the flooring in the High School cafeteria and bathroom. During the last school year several repairs had to be done on the floor just to make it last through the rest of the year.
“Our tile area in the cafeteria had to be glued several different times, because it was coming up,” Tobey said. “We’re not going to have any safety hazards in that way.”
To go along with the flooring issue, the lights were replaced as well. The final cost to update the cafeteria came in at $15,000.
In the gym, the school updated the paint scheme for the first time since 1969. Out with the old cream color and in with white.
The job was completed by Kucera Painting out of Kearney.
Hand rails were also installed for seating in the top section of the bleachers making it safer for fans who need them.
In total, it cost the school $20,000 to redo the gym.
This summer there has also been strides made in trying to fix an ongoing problem in parking. Whether it be at sporting events or other types of school functions finding a parking spot can be hard at Broken Bow High School.
The school purchased a home by 242 North 7th street for $65,000 near the school. The house was tore down and the school converted the space into more parking.
“I think one of our biggest issues is we didn’t have parking space, so having the extra space will help us with that issue,” Tobey said.
Currently the school owns three fourths of 7th Street in Broken Bow just past the school. All of it has been converted to parking. The new lot was rocked by the school itself.
All the projects are on timelines to be completed by the time classes resume August 13.