Construction will continue following GSS, safety concerns remain

The closed off walkway between the A and C buildings was scheduled to be opened up slightly to create a small path again during the week of March 2, assistant principal Denae Nurnberg said. However, due to an issue with the construction impeding the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) code, the creation of the receding walkway was halted, principal Greg Giglio said.

“The original measurements showed … where the new concrete hits the old concrete,” Giglio said. “They weren’t within the tolerances [of] the ADA code so the building is on a bit of a different level than it previously was.”

Photo by Shreya Partha
The fence around the construction was set to recede this week, but due to unforeseen issues with the concrete pouring, the pathway will remain closed for at least another three weeks.

This will push the opening of the walkway back at least three weeks, Giglio said in an email to HHS staff on Thursday, Feb. 28.

This means that we will not be getting access back at this time and that there needs to be an expansion of the work around the GSS to get those grades to comply with the code,” Giglio said in his email. “This [also] means that students and staff will still need to walk around and use the southern entrances to the C and L buildings.”

The GSS is scheduled to be completed this summer, but that does not mean construction will end. Immediately following completion of the GSS building, renovations of the A, B, C, L and S buildings will begin, principal Greg Giglio said. 

“The outsides are going to look virtually the same,” Giglio said. “They will add some windows in some areas. They will add some doorways, but they also are going to be adding new seismic improvements, new lighting, new plumbing, new electrical and a new HVAC.”

Construction on campus is expected to occur continuously over the next few years, starting first with the A building, Nurnberg said.

 “For the last 11 years there has been some construction happening on this campus, and [it] will continue for at least another five to six years,” Nurnberg said.

Giglio said the construction is being funded by the most recent bond measure. 

However, the construction on campus brings up safety concerns, Nurnberg said. The OAC meetings, which are comprised of the owner, architect and contractor, occur weekly to review these concerns.

Giglio, Nurnberg and facilities manager Toby Mockler meet with the construction crew to address safety concerns and plan for times when large trucks or heavy machinery are brought in, Nurnberg said. 

“This team has been really proactive in making sure that our site has been safe,” Nurnberg said.