Parker ES construction passes halfway mark

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Construction at Parker Elementary School is now more than halfway complete with exterior framing and roofing well underway on the east side of the building.

“I’ve been doing a monthly walk-through in the building, so I’m seeing the progress each time I go,” Parker Principal Lori Frodine said. “I feel good it’s moving along. I’m happy that they’re starting to accelerate the work.”

The construction crew is working diligently at the site to make up some time lost due to previous weather delays. Currently, they are installing the HVAC systems on the first floor along with the chilled water pipes. Installation of the sprinkler system is also in progress.

Parker is among 40 schools throughout the district being renovated or rebuilt as part of the voter-approved 2012 bond.

The $31.1 million project features a 500-seat auditorium with collapsible bleacher-style seating, band, orchestra, vocal, and multipurpose rooms, and flexible learning spaces for 850 students.

The two-story, 113,000-square-foot building will house pre-kindergarten, first-, and second-graders on the ground level and third- through fifth-graders on the second floor. The new cafeteria will also include a separate seating area for parents visiting their children for lunch.

The project’s completion is slated for fourth quarter of 2017, with the school expected to open its doors to students in January 2018.

HISD’s bond program, which was approved by voters in 2012, calls for the renovation or rebuilding of 40 schools across the district. Active construction is currently underway on roughly three dozen projects — more activity than at any other time in district history.

Almost half of the schools in the bond program will be complete and open to students by the end of this summer. Once all work is finished, the district will boast of one of the most modern portfolios of urban high schools in the country. For more information on HISD building programs, visit BuildHISD.org.