Warren County’s West Elementary gym renovation project will requires an additional $40,000 to $50,000 to replace the entire ceiling.
Warren County Director of Schools Grant Swallows said officials could not find matching tiles for spot repairs. Swallows said the original contingency fund was small and already mostly exhausted by other construction needs.
“If we waited and in five years have to replace the ceiling, then we’re going to have to have a lift or something over a fairly new wood floor, and that’s never preferable,” Swallows said. “So we felt like this was the time to do it.”
The new tiles will match the materials used throughout the rest of the school district to ensure easier maintenance in the future.
“Ultimately, the design of the project is to set the gym up for use for many years to come,” Swallows said. “Instead of just replacing an older ceiling, we decided that it was in our best interest to go ahead and, before the new flooring went down, do that, so that the flooring and the ceiling and most everything in there can match as we move forward.”
Swallows said the exact final cost for the ceiling remains slightly uncertain as officials determine the specific clips required to secure the tiles against ball impacts. The unexpected work has pushed the construction schedule back by about two weeks.
“We’re still on target, hopefully, to be finished by Christmas,” Swallows said. “That was the original timeline.”
Swallows said the original plan only called for replacing specific damaged spots in the gym, but the inability to find an exact match for the older tiles prompted the full replacement. The project is currently moving toward the installation of new wood flooring.