Patrick Juday
As we came out of the hectic pace and dust of construction work during the summer and approached the first day of school, many of us wondered if we really would be “substantially complete” to the level we could actually have students, parents and faculty and staff access those areas. On the Wednesday before school started, with the sneak preview starting in a few hours, there were still columns uncovered with an unfinished look, and furniture still being assembled plus about four or five other things needing to be completed. Miracle of miracles, by 5:00 the school was presentable, complete with furniture and column covers (still warm to the touch). Although there were some minor items to be addressed, at that point we felt like the runner collapsing at the finish line. And we thought (incorrectly) that the hardest days (facility-wise) were behind us. What we didn’t anticipate were some minor catastrophes on the horizon, some man-made and some brought on by mother nature, but all having water as a common theme.
First, a plumbing issue in the teachers’ lounge resulted in the Business Office being displaced for about 2 weeks. Fortunately, we had taken steps to make the Business Office more mobile with laptops, but it will always be remembered as the great flood of 2016 in the Business Office.
Second, a series of tornado warnings and severe weather events brought torrents of rain and a procession of people to the tornado safe zones. With weather events that produce so much rain, imperfections in the building and roof become subject to exposure, and mother nature let us know where the leaks were.
Finally, just when we thought things were settling, the water main burst outdoors just under the school’s oculus. It was quite a sight seeing the water bubbling up from the ground, and efforts to address the break were hampered by the shutoff having been covered by pavement from the road work completed on Grandview a few years ago. As a result of work into the evening by the plumbers and Citizens Energy, another miracle of miracles occurred, and the main was fixed and school was back in session the next day.
The outcomes from all these include: 1) confidence in our construction partners backing their work; 2) confidence in our severe weather protocols and safe zones; and 3) confidence that we will be prepared to more quickly address any future water main issues. The lesson learned is, always be prepared for the unexpected!