Lincoln Public Schools in "Final Wave" of City-Wide Construction

By: Kim Eiten - Email

Updated: Wed 5:59 AM, Sep 26, 2012

"Kids and staff are moving back into new buildings and we just wanted to share that with not only the board but the community." -Scott Wieskamp, LPS Facilities Director

Hundreds of millions of dollars later, Lincoln Public Schools is now in the last wave of construction on seventy-five percent of schools.

It's all the result of a 2006 bond issue.

Now, students are seeing that money hard at work.

Forget fresh pencils and new notebooks, Lincoln kids head back to school to the smell of fresh carpet and new paint.

"School just started and I think it's kind of an exciting time," LPS Facilities Director Scott Wieskamp said. "Kids and staff are moving back into new buildings and we just wanted to share that with not only the board but the community."

Over $250 million dollars and nearly seven years later, it's easy to spot taxes at work around Lincoln. Schools city-wide, have gotten a much needed face-lift.

The district's work doesn't end there.

"It's good, always to get projects done, but that doesn't mean we're not hard at work thinking about new projects and things that need to be done. The district always has needs," Wieskamp said.

One big project is the administrative building that burned to the ground last year.

"We feel good about the progress thus far," Wieskamp said. "We've been very fortunate to have good weather this summer and this fall, and so we feel like we're a little bit ahead of schedule."

If all goes well, the building should open next summer.