Construction at Lisbon schools on the new career and technical education (CTE) classroom spaces and weight room are not going to be finished on time for the start of the school year.

How far behind schedule the spaces are is still being determined, but Lisbon Schools superintendent Autumn Pino said the district has liked Peak Constructions work on the project and their openness on communication on the project.

Pino also noted it is beneficial that the classrooms impacted are those that cater to middle school and high school students, as she said students in those grades are more adaptable to having their classroom spaces impacted.

And the administration and staff have been communicating with teachers and finding spaces for classrooms that will be impacted by construction not being finished on time.

On another side of the same building, we have to commend the work that has gone into the elementary playground this summer. The drainage issues around that playground have been discussed by the board over the past several years, and the cost for the installation of drainage tiles and other items was definitely significant. It wasn’t included in the construction project originally due to those high bids, as there were locals who thought they could do this cheaper than estimated bids and the district’s money would be better spent on other portions of the construction projects.

That John Prasil and Adam Morgan have helped lead volunteers on this project to help with excavation, installation of drainage and replacing turf at the playground this summer is a benefit for the community. The rains Wednesday, July 10, gave those volunteers a chance to see their drainage was working well. And if there is one thing farmers know about, it would be the importance of good tiling and drainage that benefits getting water off fields as quickly as possible to keep ground from being saturated with water.

As elementary principal Justin Brown explains, the number of students who utilize the playground every school year means that addressing these drainage concerns and allowing the new equipment to be installed this summer and being ready for the start of school will benefit many students at Lisbon.