Schematic drawings for a major renovation project at Cravens Elementary School were approved Thursday by the Owensboro Public Schools Board of Education. The project includes building a new gym and performing arts space as well other maintenance upgrades typical for an old building.
The drawings are an entry-level design that will now be submitted to the Kentucky Department of Education for approval, according to OPS Director of Maintenance and Technology Chris Bozarth.
“After that’s approved we get into the meat of the design phase for the project,” he said. “We start to get the details and start to work with the contractors to figure out what it’s going to cost.”
As of now, there is no estimated final cost. Bozarth said they hope to have the project bid by December.
Cravens opened in 1957, some renovations done in the 1960s, and a new roof was put on in 1990. OPS spokesperson Jared Revlett said no major renovations have taken place since.
In addition to a gym and performing arts space, renovations will include a new roof, additional classrooms and bathrooms, and updated lighting and air.
“It’s the next building that’s definitely due,” Bozarth said, noting similar projects have been done at Newton Parrish and Sutton elementary schools. “It’s needed in that building. We’ve done really good work trying to keep that old building running where it is, but it’s time to get it renovated and get it right so we can maintain it properly.”
Bozarth said it would take at least 18 months and to finish the project once groundwork actually begins.
“We don’t have the luxury of just putting a new building up,” he said. “We have to look at phased projects, so we’ll be doing a section at a time, relocating students at the appropriate times and working on those spaces to try to make sure everything stays safe. It takes a little bit longer to renovate when you build using that process.”
