A symphony of construction sounds welcomes you to Increase Miller Elementary. The buzzing of circular saws builds to a crescendo as workers grind a tunnel for new electrical service to enter the building. Diesel engines rumble the bass line as they round the parking lot filled with debris. The rhythmic “beep, beep, beep” of a forklift backing up, carrying huge cartons of new furniture, could be the woodwind section.
August is an exciting phase of the Katonah-Lewisboro Schools’ Capital Improvement Project. There’s the music of progress of at all schools, with excavators to electricians, plumbers to painters, and many more building professionals playing their part in the ambitious upgrade of the school district's infrastructure and facilities.
Michael Lavoie, Katonah-Lewisboro School’s Director of Facilities, acts as the conductor. He keeps the tempo and oversees the myriad facets of work along with partners from KG+D Architects and Triton Construction, as well as Superintendent Dr. Ray Blanch and Assistant Superintendent for Business Lisa Herlihy.
“It’s exciting to see classrooms starting to come back together,” said Lavoie. “We have teams of people who are working around the clock to be ready for students and teachers in the fall.”
He’s referring to the huge undertaking which began with clearing out entire classrooms, libraries and common areas at Increase Miller Elementary and Meadow Pond Elementary, to do asbestos abatement in floor tile, install new ductwork for air conditioning in the wings, and create new libraries and STEAM labs. The work started the day after school year ended.
Head Custodians Ray Finney, at Meadow Pond, and Rich Wilson, Jr. at Increase Miller, are proud of what their teams are accomplishing—supporting the framing, electrical, and ductwork contractors’ work, and meticulously painting, cleaning, and delivering and setting up new furniture in classrooms and common areas.
“This classroom is done,” said Finney, pointing out the flexible new furniture for students and teachers, and steel blue accent wall he’d painted.
New security greeter vestibules at Increase Miller Elementary and Meadow Pond Elementary are no longer just on paper—the foundations are in. When Wilson opens a classroom window to show how a hallway will connect the Increase Miller Elementary’s existing building with the new wing, the newly poured footings make it easy to see where the classrooms and interior courtyard will be.
There’s an excavation in the works at John Jay Middle School, too—creating footings and retaining walls for an outdoor classroom and new, accessible playground. The space was designed with SEPTPO’s input as a flexible and informal space place for hanging out as well as learning.
The architect’s plans stay open in the Moose Lodge, a meeting room at Meadow Pond Elementary; they serve as the musical score to the Capital Improvement Project. The white board shows the schedule. Last week, welders installed steel beams for the rooftop air conditioning and heating units. Today, the crew is hooking up the new units on the roof.
The delivery trucks' engines and installers' hammering are music to Assistant Superintendent Herlihy's ears. "These projects are progressing well, and I am happy to report they are on schedule, within budget, and proceeding according to plan," she said.