By Emily Burleigh

Construction on much-awaited projects at Washington-Marion Magnet High School are in progress.

Washington-Marion will soon begin the construction of two gyms. This project, as well as many others, is part of a $48 million district wide project.

“We have a beautiful project taking place here,” said Calcasieu Parish School Board District 2 Rep. Fred Hardy. “What we’re really trying to do is to make Washington attractive, competitive, academically strong, and I believe we have the people to do so.”

The upcoming renovations have been long awaited.

“It was passed by the public on Nov. 17, 2017,” Hardy said. “We’ve had two hurricanes, the pandemic, freezes. All those things have delayed the projects.”

The new gymnasiums will be state-of-the art. “I think it’s going to be very unique. We are going to have a boy’s gym and a girl’s gym, side by side.”

In addition to the new gyms, Washington-Marion intends on remodeling facilities throughout the school.

“We are trying to work on all areas of the school in different phases,” said David Moss, project manager and architect for Moss Architects. “Some of the bigger projects have slowed down a bit because of the disasters we’ve had.”

The project is in Phase 5, which includes a new lobby connector and parking lot expansion.

Moss cites supply chain issues, labor force issues and an increased cost of construction for the delays.

“As soon as this project gets completed, we will move right into the start of the new gym,” Moss said. “We’re trying to get this project that is going on now, the parking lot completed, so that we’ll have the space to work on our new gym.”

Aside from the new gymnasiums, future projects include converting the current gymnasium into a theater and performance stage with a concession stand. The band room will be updated with new cubicles, which will allow students to practice individually, as well as interior upgrades to the administrative offices and library.

There are also plans to remove natural debris from the hurricanes, and build two standard baseball fields in its place. One will be a girl’s field, while the other will be a boy’s field.

“We want to make sure it is very functional, and that it meets the needs of teachers and parents,” Hardy said. “This will be a welcome addition for this community.”

So far, the total of renovations at Washington-Marion has cost $8,503,185.

Also, $3.1 million has been used for the school’s current construction, an expansion of the parking lot and an additional lobby to the existing gymnasium.

The remaining funds were used to fund several re-roofing projects, interior classroom updates, construction of a two-story building with classrooms, and improvement of the football stadium.

“Originally, the bond money for this school was around $17 million in total,” Moss said. “The revised bond amount is $22,263,300, and the estimated total is $25,228,185.

Moss said several projects have been completed with about $14 million left to finish projects.

“The gym project itself is going to be a main focus, and it’s going to be an about $8 million project.”

While there is no strict timeline for the completion of these projects, phase 9 of the bond issue projects is scheduled for 2024.

“Timelines are tough these days,” Moss said. “We hope to have the lobby completed by the end of the year, and we are trying to finish the parking lot area prior to football season in September.”

The CPSB District 31 Bond was approved in 2017. The approval of this bond created a levy of property taxes for 20 years. The breakdown cost for homeowners in District 31 per month is as follows; homes valued at $75,000 is $0, $100,000 is $5.75, $175,000 is $23.00, and $250,000 is $40.25.

Moss Architects is working with Ellender Architects and Associates as project manager.