12 I The Lovell Chronicle I October 16, 2014
Bulldog Caf opens this week
BY PATrl CARPENTER
For the first time in
many years, students at
Lovell High School will
be able to relax and en-
joy lunch with their fel-
low classmates on campus
when the new balcony seat-
ing area adjacent to the re-
cently completed multi-pur-
pose room opens for their
use on Tuesday, Oct. 21.
Prior to completion of the
newly constructed area,
students were bused to the
elementary school for lunch
that was served out of the
school district's main kitch-
en, which is located on the
elementary school campus.
Also opening for stu-
dent use is the new "Bull-
dog Caf ," which will serve
a limited fare prepared in
its brand new kitchen. Full
lunches will continue to be
prepared at the elementa-
ry school and delivered and
served through the caf&
"We've already started
stocking the cafeteria, our
cooks have been trained on
use of the equipment and
we're going to serve lunch
on Tuesday," said Big Horn
County School District No.
2 Supt. Rick Woodford.
MULTI-PURPOSE ROOM
Also complete as of this
week is the school's new
multi-purpose room, which
is professionally designed
to allow for state-of-the-art
presentations.
"I got to experience it
firsthand and the sound
quality in the multi-pur-
pose room is going to be
first class," said Woodford.
"Our staff has been trained
how to use the multi-me-
dia equipment, the projec-
tor and screen, and how to
use the video and the audio
systems."
According to Woodford,
the new system includes
wireless microphone capa-
bility. It also includes wire-
less assisted hearing de-
vices for those who have
hearing impairments like
an "FM loop" compatible
with many hearing aides or
a headset directly linked to
the microphone system.
"Audience members will
be able to hear clearly what
is being amplified through
the PA system," said Wood-
ford. "It has all been acous-
tically tuned so that all the
frequencies are where they
are supposed to be and it
PATTI CARPENTER
A construction worker puts the finishing touches on the newly remodeled
multi-purpose room at Lovell High School this week.
PATTI CARPENTER
The Bulldog Cafd is ready to serve lunch to Lovell High School students for the
first time on Tuesday, Oct. 21.
sounds just fantastic.
"The system has been
designed and engineered
for the room. Acoustic pan-
els are a part of the system
along with acoustic reflec-
tors that will project the
sound without the use of
microphones."
Woodford said two cus-
tom made glass doors and a
window are the only items
that have not been deliv-
ered and installed at the in-
door entrance to the mul-
tipurpose room but he
expects those items to ar-
rive as early as next week.
"They are actually fra-
meless glass doors and a
glass panel that will serve
as a window or glass wall,"
said Woodford. "Other than
that and a few punch list
items, the multi-purpose
room is complete. This is a
facility that will serve our
students and our communi-
ty for years to come."
NORTH WING DELAYS
Change orders have
backed up work into No-
vember for the school's
north wing, which includes
the family and consumer
science room, district of-
rices, boardroom and spe-
cial education areas. Exte-
rior walls in the boardroom
and special education room
will require some insula-
tion that was not present
in that area. Woodford said
construction crews found
some exposed beam and
places requiring patchwork
and it seemed best to just
insulate the area at this
time. He said the job is cur-
rently out to bid and he an-
ticipates money from the
contingency fund to cover
the cost.
"Originally, when the
plans were drawn up, all of
the exterior walls were to
get insulation, but that got
cut," he explained. "Now
with money left in the con-
tingency fund, we've made
a decision to go forward
with that. It will cost the
state out of the contingen-
cy fund, but it won't cost us
out of local tax dollars.
"We are in the process
of getting estimates for the
work. If we proceed with
that plan it will probably
back the project up another
couple of weeks. We're hop-
ing to see completion by the
first week of November."
He said with the floor-
ing done, ceilings in prog-
ress, painting done, and
work on electrical and data
systems in progress, No-
vember should be a rea-
sonable date to expect
completion.
One special education
classroom in the wing is
done and. is currently in
use, but the kitchen and
bathroom facility locat-
ed between the two class-
rooms is not done. He said
an error in cabinetry sent
items back to the cabinet-
maker and caused comple-
tion of those areas to fall
behind schedule.
BUS LANES
"The bus lane is work-
ing great," said Woodford.
"I think our kids are safer
because of it. It's just work-
ing out really well."
He noted that the bus
lane near the gym is also
functioning and has made
that area safer, especial-
ly when games are in
progress.
"It's never safe to drive
a bus through a parking
lot," he said. "It's so much
safer for the buses to have
their own lane."
ATHLETIC AREAS
So far, improvements
to the playing field have
been well received by foot-
ball players and fans alike.
"I think the public has
had the chance to see the
new football field," said
Woodford. "The kids seem
to be really happy with it."
Fans attending bas-
ketball games this winter
will find themselves a lit-
tle more sure-footed due
to a new heated sidewalk
in front of the gym that
will kick in to prevent ice
from forming at the en-
trance to the gym. The
system, which is heated
by an underground sys-
tem driven by a thermo-
stat controlled boiler sys-
tem should prevent ice
from forming in the heav-
ily traveled area.
Additional improve-
ments to the outdoor ath-
letic areas, including the
discus cage, and the long
jump and pole vault ar-
eas should be done in the
spring. Woodford said the
practice field now has a
new underground sprin-
kler system and the area
will be hydro-seeded in the
fall.
"We hope to see a nice
green practice field by next
June," he said.
The new weight room
is done, and waiting for
equipment to arrive. The
equipment was ordered
some time ago but some of
it is custom, which Wood-
ford said takes additional
time.
The indoor concession
stand will not be open to
football attendees this sea-
son, as was originally an-
ticipated. Woodford said it
was decided to not open it
to football fans until side-
walks were in place be-
tween the football field
and the concession stand.
Woodford said he doesn't
expect that to happen un-
til next year. In the mean-
time, fans have been using
the concession stand locat-
ed in the gym.
PARENT/TEACHER
CONFERENCES
No public events sched-
uled as yet, but parents
will be able to see the ar-
eas that are complete when
they attend parent/teach-
er conferences later in the
month (Oct. 27 and 30). He
said all areas that are com-
plete are expected to be ac-
cessible to parents during
their visit.
He said he wasn't
aware of any public events
scheduled for the new
multi-purpose room yet
but expects the first major
event will be a ribbon cut-
ting and open house to be
scheduled after all projects
are completed.
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