Since the demolition of a portion of the old Humboldt Collegiate Institute (HCI) last summer, progress on the construction of the new Humboldt Public School (HPS) is visible to passersby as they travel east along Hwy. 5.
"There are three components to this project," said Ray Pervan, Facilities Superintendent for the Horizon School Division.
"A lot of demolition has occurred with more to come; there is the renovation of the existing facilities and there is the new construction of the link that will join the sections to one another."
Essentially, portions of the old HCI have been demolished, other parts of HCI and HPS are being renovated and construction of a new corridor will link the two facilities into one larger, elementary school.
The project got off to a later than anticipated start due to the tendering process.
"We encountered some problems with the process and by the time we got it completed, the board was on summer break," Pervan said.
According to site superintendent Marty Yeager of HLM Construction, the crew's first day on-site was July 27.
Site preparation and demolition of portions of the old HCI building were two of the first things to occur.
Once the work crews got inside the building and renovating the portions of the building that will be retained for the new elementary school, a number of additional factors were uncovered and had to be taken into consideration.
"When we looked at the heating and duct work in the west wing, we realized it wouldn't be capable of cooling down this wing in a timely manner. So we had to look at whether to upgrade it or leave it," Pervan said.
Although that area of the school had been upgraded to accommodate Humboldt hosting the Sask. Winter Games in 2002, the decision was made to have the renovated wing's system match the rest of the building.
"When you are looking at longevity," said Pervan. "I believe the life expectancy for items such as heating would be around 25 years, so if you don't upgrade it all now, then in a few years you'd have to go in and do what was not done at this time."
The decision was made to upgrade the entire heating system in the old west wing. Another glitch the construction crew has encountered is the variance between the existing structures and the new construction.
"Things don't fit as well as we had hoped," said Yeager. "In some areas it (the difference between the new construction and existing building) has been between six and eight inches off."
Despite uncovering unexpected obstacles, the project is moving ahead. According to Yeager's records, only one week (five working days) has been lost to weather.
"Once we get through the structural process," said Yeager, "Things will go faster."
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Yeager is targeting mid-February as the time when the new structure will be enclosed.
"July to October will be hectic when it comes time to tie the two buildings together," said Yeager.
Pervan noted the demolition of the original HPS three-storey structure will take place this summer.
Despite the construction crew's best efforts, the proposed move of all the students into the renovated old west wing has been pushed back from Sept. 1 to the end of October.
Pervan explained availability of tradesmen and materials has impacted the projected timeline.
The arrival of the steel decking for the new construction created a hub of activity Monday, January 14.
"On a heavy day like today, we can have close to 30 men on-site," said Yeager.
With three components to the project, work will keep humming along in various locations until it is completed.
Pervan noted the original projection of 18 months to complete the project may be an optimistic goal considering the minor setbacks it has already experienced.
