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Capital improvements on tap for Evanston Township High School
Evanston Township High School is in line for new capital improvements. The Dodge Avenue area, including the auditorium entrance there, will get a new sidewalk, low-level lighting, and a new sign. | File photo
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Updated: March 22, 2013 9:58AM
EVANSTON — Emergency phones, a bike path extension and better lighting are among $2 million in capital improvements slated for Evanston Township High School.
The Dodge Avenue area, including the auditorium entrance there, will get a new sidewalk, low-level lighting, and a new sign, said Bill Stafford, chief financial officer for Evanston Township High School District 202.
“We think it’s important in terms of safety that we provide more lighting there,” Stafford said. “We don’t like the way the auditorium entrance is laid out. There are some blind spots there that we don’t like, and that we want to work on.”
No direct path runs to the auditorium entrance, he said. In addition, an existing path must be enlarged to allow vehicle access without causing damage, Stafford said.
“There are also some low shrubs there that need to go,” he said. “Those shrubs are not conducive to either the look or the safety of the area.”
Many of the projects will be completed in conjunction with the city of Evanston, including emergency phones, an extension of the bike path from Dodge to McCormick Boulevard, and increased lighting, Stafford said.
“The plan is to have much of the bike path on ETHS property,” he said. “An advantage of doing that will be putting in more lighting along that path.”
Except for the bike path, most of the improvements are already scheduled for this summer, he said. The bike path will likely be extended this summer or next summer, Stafford said.
Other projects, he said, include:
• New Science, Technology, Engineering and Math mini-labs for geometry for construction and for graphic and digital photography.
• A new cooling tower in the school’s north end. “This will vastly improve our air-conditioning capability and also be much more cost-effective,” Stafford said.
• A new elevator in the Beardsley wing. “This (elevator) will be much less susceptible to breaking down,” he said.
• Masonry work at the power plant. “We’re going to fortify the chimney there and do some masonry in the critical areas around the building,” Stafford said.
