The Dolores County RE-2J school district will be holding a ribbon-cutting ceremony and tour of their nearly completed elementary school on Aug. 7 from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
The ceremony will be on the grounds of the new Dove Creek Elementary School, 813 N. Main St. in Dove Creek, one week before the first day of school on Wednesday, Aug. 14.
The ceremony will start with a welcome, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, speeches from Superintendent Ty Gray and elementary school Principal Charlotte Forst, ribbon cutting and tour.
The groundbreaking for was May 25, 2023. The district had worked to get the BEST grant to build school since 2019.
“There’s a lot of excitement starting to really come out,” Gray told The Journal on Wednesday. “The building looks pretty much complete on the outside, and with the old school coming down and seeing everything, it’s becoming a reality to the community members that it is going to be done and ready for school.”
The old elementary school has been demolished, according to Gray.
“It’s been time for teachers to get to work in a nice facility with everything they need,” he said. “It’s going to make the teacher’s job much easier and more enjoyable. I hope they have a nice environment to work in,” Gray said.
During the groundbreaking in 2023, Forst spoke of the many challenges experienced in the old school building, including electrical and heating problems in winter. After visiting a school built by the BEST grant in Alamosa, Forst said she wanted that for students in Dove Creek too.
“The funny thing is I've always taught in old buildings,” Forst said. “I went to school here; it’s good enough to get by. We’re tough, right? But I saw that building and I saw the inequity, and I saw that our kids don’t have as nice of a building as the other students in the state do and that just broke my heart.”
The building executive committee consists of Gray, Forst, Chase Davis, Vernon Hall and Roxie Guynes. The owner’s representatives are Artaic Group’s Sarah Lara, Chris Guarino and Matthew Prinster.
The building and design was done by Neenan Archistruction, and the project was also worked on by Iconergy, Jones and DeMille Engineering and Foothills Environmental.
The school is receiving its final touches. On July 17, the building received its final inspection and temporary certification of occupancy. The move-in is set for Monday, July 22.
“So Phase 1, the only thing remaining right now is a little bit of concrete work, a little bit of drainage work and landscaping,” Gray said.
The fire alarm rough inspection is complete, and the state inspection was completed Wednesday morning. Once they receive a thumbs-up from the inspectors, they can begin moving in next week.
“The building is basically complete. We’re supposed to take ownership of it tomorrow,” Gray said.
Phase 2 of the project will include the construction of a parking lot and a drop-off area for students. Until then, Gray said they find an alternative plan.
“We’re going to put together a good logistics plan for how we’re moving kids in and out of the building,” Gray said. “Get parents able to drop off, working around the construction project, where staff parks and getting staff in and out of the building without too big of a headache.”
The BEST approved project budget was $22,997,623. The school received $12.6 million from BEST grant through the capital construction program of the Colorado Department of Education, and a bond passed by voters in November 2022 provided $10.3 million.
“We got just about everything we asked for out of the project, so it’s been a very good experience,” Gray said.
