Students begin school year with renovated cafeteria, library; more to come
By ASHLEY TRUJILLO
Daily Press Staff Writer
After undergoing an extensive remodel over the past year, Central Elementary School welcomed students for the fall semester on Monday with several new additions to the building.
Much of the $1.9 million facelift is complete, with the remainder expected to be finished sometime this fall. Construction on the school began in January and was headed by Wade Construction of Carlsbad.
“They worked hard all summer and did a great job with the remodel,” Tammy Davis, principal at Central, said.
The cafeteria is one of the building repairs that were completed in time for the new school year. The walls are now painted brightly with illustrations of children at play and artwork is suspended from the ceiling.
“The cafeteria is great now,” Davis said. “You should have seen it before.”
Among the completed renovations were new work spaces for staff members and remodeled bathrooms. According to Davis, the facilities were more than 30 years old and in need of repair.
Aside from building remodels, construction has begun on an entirely new part of the building’s structure.
Excitement is brewing at Central for a new gym, which will provide children with the benefits of having physical education classes in a space designed specifically for that purpose.
In past years, P.E. classes at the school have been taught either outside or in the cafeteria. According to Davis, students had to stay in classrooms for activities during inclement weather conditions. When the new gym opens, P.E. classes will no longer be hindered.
The building, set for completion in October, will feature a stage that gives the school a place for activities previously held in the cafeteria.
“Now we’ll be able to have art meetings, assemblies and family functions in the gym,” Davis said. “Before, there would be times when we had three or four different activities in the same place.
“Now we have lots of room.” […]
