NEW PALESTINE — As the $49 million renovation project at New Palestine High School moves through its next phase, plans to create a new entrance and exit for traffic on the east side of the campus are also moving forward.
During its December meeting, the school board authorized officials to advertise for bids on construction of a new entrance off South County Road 450W. The new drive will make it easier for students who live east of campus to get to school, said Wes Anderson, community relations director for Southern Hancock schools.
The new entrance will give the school complex a total of three entrance/exit points. It will have left and right turn lanes heading onto 450W leaving the high school campus. The street will wind through the back area of the campus.
The timeline for construction is dependent on the progress of the high school renovation. Leaders hope the new entrance/exit is ready for the start of school in August 2021.
Advertising for bids is expected sometime in January; a winning bid could be selected at the February board meeting.
In the meantime, the rest of the renovation project is on schedule. Workers have completed 19 temporary classrooms inside the new fieldhouse. Most of them will be used for English and math instruction after Christmas Break, starting Monday, Jan. 4. The furniture for the classrooms was delivered Wednesday, Dec. 16.
In addition, some 300 new parking spaces near the fieldhouse are also ready. They will be used for student parking once the full project is done.
Principal Jim Voelz and Anderson created a video they shared on the district’s Facebook page showcasing all the updates.
A new weight room, complete with a three-lane track, also is finished and is in use by Dragon athletes.
“This weight room is one of the nicest ones around,” Voelz said.
The revamped wrestling room is also open, with freshly painted walls and a new coaches office.
Demolition on the inside of school — in the old English and math wing — starts in January.
“It’s going to be pretty dramatic come January, when a large chuck of our school is going to be gone,” Voelz said. “That’s why we need those 19 classrooms back in the fieldhouse.”
For those who have not been on the campus for weeks due to COVID-19 restrictions, Anderson said they’ll notice a drastic change in how things look if they can return as scheduled the first week of January.
Anderson noted district officials will make a determination next week on reopening the high school. High school students have not been in the building since well before Thanksgiving.
