Summer break allows Olympus High School construction project to make headway

While students took a vacation from school work over the summer, construction workers took advantage of the break to begin construction on the new Olympus High School that is being built just north of the existing school.

“The project is moving along at a pretty good pace,” district architect Geoff Woods said. The baseball field and multi use field have been paved and are being used for temporary parking. The pool facility has been removed and the ground is being prepared for footings.

There’s been a big push to remodel the football field and have it completed by the Oct. 7 Homecoming game. So far in the season, the team has been using the Skyline field for most of their home games.

 The new field will consist of artificial turf with an eight-lane synthetic track surface around the perimeter. The new state-of- the-art track will qualify the school to hold district tournaments. Artificial turf on the playing field allows the team to both practice and play on the same field.

“I think that when the field is complete, it will be a real rallying point for the students,” Woods said.

So far, the construction has hit only some minor snags such as a cell phone tower that has been somewhat of a challenge to remove and relocate and unexpected soil issues that have had to be dealt with during the excavation process. Oakland Construction plans to pour footings as soon as possible.   

Lower construction costs resulting from the recession have allowed the Granite School District to save on the project. The design for the nearly 400,000-square-foot school is budgeted at $64 million.

The existing school was built in 1952 and student capacity is 1,500. When completed, the new building will accommodate up to 1,750 students. The new school is scheduled to open in the fall of 2013.