PROGRESS: Dakota Valley High School construction nears the end

Superintendent Al Leber said the brick work on the exterior of the new, $27 million facility is about 50 percent complete, while 90 percent of the roof is done. He said utilities such as heating, air conditioning, plumbing and electricity are all in the process of installation.

Leber said the rain over the summer and then snow impeded progress slightly – about a month. Nonetheless, he said staff is optimistic the school will be able to host students by the beginning of classes in 2016.

He said, if need be, the contractor will adjust plans to make sure all the classrooms and other vital rooms are complete by early August to accommodate students and staff. Other aspects, such as locker rooms, may need to be finished at the beginning of the year.

In June 2014, the community overwhelmingly approved a bond issue to pay for a new $27 million facility. The bond passed with 84 percent support; only 60 percent was needed for approval.

Leber said area taxpayers will not see an increase in property taxes. Taxpayers are currently paying $2.25 per $1,000 in valuation for school buildings -- $1.25 on the current high school’s bond and $1 for the elementary school’s bond. The district was scheduled to make the final payment on the current high school bond in summer of 2014 and payments on the new bond began in January 2015.

Once complete, the new high school, connected to the existing campus, will boast a larger space for family and consumer science programs, an expanded special education section, a large lab for technology courses, general use classrooms, science labs, an industrial trades facility, storage rooms, a library with a new multimedia center and a gymnasium.