Hard hats and golden shovels were broken out Monday afternoon, as groundbreaking ceremonies got underway to initiate construction activity at the elementary campus.

“Things have been going along very well,” said superintendent Dr. Buck Ford. “It was good to get everybody together and have this ceremony to signify that construction activity is soon to be underway. There’s been a lot of work put into this so far.”

The first construction activity at the site will be some interior demolition work set to begin in early October.

“We are receiving bids for interior demolition of the Old Yellow Building on September 20, 2011,” said construction manager Tom Rehak of Vanguard Contractors. “We are planning to receive bids for the renovation, additions, and the new construction on December 19, 2011.”

“We are planning to start construction by mid-January of 2012, completing the work by mid-December of 2012, allowing the District to utilize the facilities in January of 2013.”

Architect Randy Fromberg said, “With the Board’s approval of Design Development documents last Monday, we are proceeding with the final Construction Documents. We will continue to solicit input from Blanco ISD staff and administration. This input will help to shape the design for a school that best suits the elementary students.”

“So far, we have made great progress with the enthusiastic support of all the folks in Blanco. Our next presentation to the Board will be to review the final documents in anticipation of going out to bid in late November.”

“This has been a unique project that blends the “Old Yellow” school building into a state of the art facility, and a unified elementary campus.”