WEST LIBERTY – West Liberty-Salem Local Schools’ building project is nearing completion, with the majority of the work set to be done within the week.

The project is expected to be about finished March 31, Superintendent Kraig Hissong told the school board Tuesday.

The building project added classroom space, a second driveway, a second school entrance for bus traffic to improve traffic flow, redesigned the administrative offices and replaced aging items like roofs and windows. The last phase redesigns what will be the grade 2-3 wing and is expected to be done by March 31.

Last minute fixes remain, from paint to replacing doors, door locks and some windows. Also the modular classrooms must be removed once students are all in the new school, and final paving and site work must be completed, Hissong said. Construction crews will likely do that work this summer, when students are out of the building.

The biggest phase over last summer pushed into the start of the current school year, so it wasn’t completely final when school opened. That phase remodeled the “core” areas of the building, such as hallways and classrooms already there. That’s one big part of why there are leftover items.

Along with those leftover fixes, some changes were brought in as a result of the school shooting that occurred at West Liberty-Salem in January. The district chose to get windows that offer better exit capabilities in the event of an emergency, and door locks needed to be changed for more ease of use in emergencies.

If there are building funds left over at the end of the project, they can be used to add features the district wanted but wasn’t sure it could afford. Currently, the district predicts it could have approximately $320,000 left over, according to information provided by Kim Magovac of the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission.

All work will be completed before the start of the next school year, Hissong and building construction officials say.