A new front entrance is being built onto Pius X this summer.
The plans for a new entrance have been in the making for a long time, and soon these plans will be put into action.
“The plan is, as soon as school is out, they will start tearing up the existing entrance, and getting started, we are trying to get as much done as we can before school starts,” facilities manager Matt Schafers said.
The purpose of this new entrance is to provide more security for students and staff while also providing new offices for staff members such as Heather Scheffler, Judy Brichacek and Cristina Castaneda De Duarte whose offices will be in what is currently Ryan Psota’s classroom. The nurse’s office will also be there as well.
“The new part will be a new entrance where visitors can come in. There will be a person there to welcome them,” principal Terry Kathol said. “There will be a meeting room and offices for the principals there as well. The purpose of that is really to provide a secure entrance.”
Construction is not expected to be completed until around the end of February of 2024, so it is important to know what to expect next year.
“Of course, with our front entrance under construction, we might very well have kids come in through the L/PAC,” chief administrative officer Tom Korta said. “We will have someone in the L/PAC lobby receiving visitors.”
Another important detail is what will happen to the current office.
“We have some other people who have offices throughout the building that really are spread out from where we would really like them to be,” Kathol said. “This is going to give us an opportunity to bring them closer from where they are.”
The front entrance is not the only projects being planned; it is part of the “master plan.” Other projects include a new Performing Arts Center and locker rooms. However, these projects are not planned to start for a few more years.
“It’s exciting to continue to modernize and update the facility and keep up with particularly security standards that we have today,” Schafers said.
