Summer construction projects in the Peekskill City School District are on schedule and “looking real good,” Superintendent of Schools James Willis told the Board of Education this week.
The projects, including cafeteria and kitchen renovations at Peekskill High School, retaining wall repair at Oakside Elementary School and security upgrades at all buildings, are among those funded by the $3,165,000 bond issue approved by district voters in May 2011.
“I’m really pleased,” Willis told the board Tuesday night after a recent tour of the construction sites with Joseph Mosey, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, Gregory Sullivan, assistant superintendent for business, and Carmine Crisci, director of facilities.
The high school courtyard, outside the main entrance, “will be a great place for the kids,” Sullivan said.
As a contingency, the school is preparing to offer box lunches for the first week or two of school in case the cafeteria serving line is not quite ready when students return Sept. 6.
The district will have an opportunity to show off the upgraded cafeteria when the Board of Education holds a workshop meeting there Sept. 4.
Willis noted that the improved cafeteria is the first of four major events at the high school in coming months. The Jason C. Paige Fitness Center is scheduled to be ready by the end of September; a workshop will be held with state Sen. Greg Ball, R-Patterson, Oct. 2; and “PK 21,” the new alternative education program, will launch in January.
In other construction matters:
- Window replacement and asbestos abatement in the Administration Center have district officials and staffers shuffling among offices but “It’s looking great and it will be a better work environment,” Sullivan said, adding that the new double-pane, insulated windows make offices much quieter as well as being more energy efficient. The building’s heating system is also being rehabilitated and upgraded.
- “Everything is moving along” with technology upgrades, Mosey said.
- Board member Tuesday McDonald commended Athletic Director Louis Panzanaro for his yeoman efforts soliciting contributions to the Fitness Center.
