It’s a summer of out with the old, in with the new at Powell Middle School.

In coming weeks, the old middle school will be demolished and the next phase of the new facility will be finished.

Substantial completion of the new 58,000-square-foot classroom section is slated for Aug. 4, said Todd Wilder, coordinator of support services.

That date is several weeks behind the original schedule, Wilder told the Park County School District No. 1 Board of Trustees last week. School staff will only have a few weeks to set up classrooms before students arrive for the first day of classes on Aug. 26.

“There’s been a number of issues in the building that have driven that (delay) — some constructability issues, some coordination issues and drawings, resulting in change orders,” Wilder said.

Change orders have increased the project’s contract sum by $118,660, bringing the total cost of the state-funded project to $16.47 million, Wilder said.

He said items the district requested also contributed to schedule delays and cost increases. For example, school leaders decided to take the leap to new WiFi technology that requires Category 6 cabling, which is hard to come by, Wilder said.

“When our electrical subcontractor started calling suppliers to find it, there was only like 100,000 feet of it available to purchase, and we needed 30,000 feet of it. We got it, and the first thing they asked us is which defense agency we worked for,” Wilder said.

In addition to advanced technology throughout the building, the new Powell Middle School has many other modern and distinctive features — an outdoor science lab, solar tubes providing additional light in classrooms, barn doors connecting classes and a stadium seating area.

The new school features separate classroom wings or “houses” for sixth, seventh and eighth grades, each with unique colors and design aspects.

The facility was designed with students in mind, said middle school principal Jason Sleep.

“We finally have a school designed just for middle school kids,” Sleep said, adding that students and staff had input in the design.

The old building is a combination of additions and renovations over the decades.

“It’s always been a hodgepodge,” Sleep said. “One thing about middle school kids is that they have to feel like they belong, and this is intentional enough that everybody’s going to see we didn’t forget about our middle school kids.”

School leaders wanted to keep the middle school in the location near downtown, but that meant doing the project in phases over several years. That has caused some headaches, especially with integrating utilities between the old and new buildings, Wilder said.

Students and staff remained in the old building this year while construction occurred on the new classroom section.

Phase I of the new project, completed in 2012, features the commons area where students gather for meals. The temporary wall between the commons area and the new classroom building was torn down recently, so the two phases are now connected.

“It just opens it up — you thought it was a marvelous space before, you ought to walk in it now and see it opened up,” Wilder said.

Gym renovation scaled back

The only section of the old building that will remain is the gym.

Groathouse Construction, the general contractor for the project, and school leaders decided to scale back the gym renovation work this summer to ensure that it will be available to students in the fall.

“The contractor felt there was a lot of risk in being able to get every piece of renovation work done in the gym and have it available in the fall,” Wilder said. “We have no options — we need that gym available to us in the fall.”

Some of the HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) work will be done next year. Crews didn’t want to replace the floor this year and then risk damaging it with heavy equipment needed for the HVAC work next year.

This summer, crews will replace the roof, sprinkler system and light fixtures throughout the gym and locker rooms. Crews also will get all of the utilities switched over to support the old music/art wing on the west side of the building. That section will remain in use in the coming school year while a new section for those classes is constructed.

Construction on the new music/art wing will start once the old classroom section is demolished, Wilder said.

In the spring and summer of 2016, crews will finish renovation of the gym, demolish the old music/art wing, construct a new parking lot and finish the site work, he said.

New school year in new building

Many changes are in store for middle school students and staff when classes start on Aug. 26: a new school, a new schedule and a new technology device.

After four years with iPads, the school is switching to Dell Latitude laptops for students and employees. The laptops were selected because they have a physical keyboard, provide adequate storage space, are rugged enough for middle school students and also will be productive for every class. Teachers found iPads had limitations for certain classes and assignments, said Zach Opps, who teaches computer science at the middle school.

As part of a new schedule, students will have an intervention class called W.I.N. (What I Need), where they can get extra time, support and enrichment. In the advocacy or S.W.A.G. class (Students With Advocacy Group), kids can build relationships, grow in character and become successful students, Sleep said.

With all of the upcoming changes, middle school assistant principal Kyle Rohrer said he’s most looking forward to the efficiency of the new building.

“The utilization of the space is pretty efficient,” Rohrer said.

Students will attend most classes in their designated wing. Each classroom wing contains core classrooms, a teaching planning center, special education classrooms, bathrooms and drinking fountains.

The building also has unique outdoor features, including a courtyard, sundial and shadow sign. As the sun hits the sign, the words Powell Middle School appear in a shadow across the front of the building.

The new classroom building also is closer to the track and field that previously belonged to Powell High School, but now is used by the middle school.

The old and the new are coming together.

“It’s starting to feel like a campus,” Sleep said.

For the old Powell Middle School, the last day of school marked the final time students filled its classrooms and hallways.

The main classroom section of the old middle school — one of the oldest remaining school structures in Powell — will be demolished after July 4. Demolition of the building is expected to last about 4 to 6 weeks, said Todd Wilder, coordinator of support services.

“Any time something old goes away and it’s replaced by something new, there’s a lot of memories involved,” said Dale Ann Meeker, who teaches P.E. at the middle school. “A lot of memories will go down with the building. We had a lot of great kids come through here.”

Meeker started teaching at the middle school when the early 1980s addition was completed on the building.

The school’s gym will remain, but will undergo significant renovations and improvements.

“At least they’re keeping part of it,” said Yogi Sullivan, who will be in the seventh grade this fall. He said he would miss the familiarity of the old school building.

Amid the busyness of the end of the school year, there wasn’t much time to think about the old school’s last days, said Amanda Johnston, who teaches social studies.

“It’s been so hectic getting everything packed and moved,” Johnston said on the last day of school. “I haven’t had time to get really emotional about it.”

In the process of packing, she found pictures of former students who are now grown up and have kids of their own.

Within a few days of the school year ending on May 29, crews began asbestos abatement in the old building. That meant classrooms and other areas had to be cleaned out quickly, and nearly 50 student athletes showed up to help, Wilder said.

“They had every room moved out and cleaned out in two hours,” Wilder said. “It was a great effort … it’s another manifestation of the value of athletics in the district — it’s not just about being competitive, but also teaches teamwork, how to work together and get your work done.”

On the last day of school, students had mixed reactions to the old school’s demolition.

Maddi Hackenberg and Megan Cotter said there are a lot of memories in the building, and multiple generations of families went through the old school.

“We’re going to miss it,” Tegan Lovelady said.

Students also agreed they’re looking forward to the new classroom section.

“We’re going to have a whole new building,” said Nicolas Fulton. “It will be really exciting.”

Longtime teacher Myra LaFrentz, who retired this month, said it’s not the end, but only the beginning with a new building as well as new opportunities.

“Even though the bricks and mortar will go down, the memories will last a lifetime, and all are looking forward to that first day of school when new memories are yet to be made,” LaFrentz said.