A close-up of booths in Central Nine’s new welding room. The new building will double the amount of students that they can accept into the welding program. Jayden Kennett | Daily Journal
A multi-million dollar project to expand Central Nine Career Center is nearly complete two and a half years after breaking ground. Construction crews are finishing final touches before the building will be open for students.
Director Bill Kovach hopes students will be able to enjoy the new space by April. By next school year, students will be able to learn in a new welding space and multipurpose room, he said.
The process has been long, but Central Nine is motivated to finish and make sure everything is up to their standards, Kovach said.
“Every time you think you get something done, there’s something else,” Kovach said.
The center’s board of trustees picked Indianapolis-based firm Lancer + Beebe as its architect in Feb. 2021 for a $4.6 million project to double its welding space and add a multipurpose room. After the board approved the project architect, school boards for each of the nine high schools that send students to Central Nine voted to approve the plan.
The new welding building will double the capacity of Central Nine’s welding classes. Because of the size of their current facilities, Central Nine has to turn away more students who want to learn welding than they accept, Kovach said.
In the new welding area, there are two classrooms and 40 welding booths for students, including handicapped-accessible booths in some corners of the building. The new building features higher ceilings, more floor space and more booths.
Eventually, Central Nine will hire another welding teacher, Kovach said. The position is posted and they are in the process of interviewing some candidates, Kovach said. A lot of staff are excited to utilize the new spaces, he said.
“If I’m a welding teacher, this is like going to Disneyland,” Kovach said.
The new multipurpose building will provide a central gathering place for Central Nine to host student training, guest speakers, events and more. Teachers and staff are working together to determine the best use of the space, Kovach said.
Landscaping around the new buildings will be done with the help of students, which gives the students experience while also saving money for the school, Kovach said. Three students were also hired to keep the grounds over summer break, he said.
Kovach said other Central Nine directors from across the state have been impressed with the new buildings.
“I think this would be one of those places, other people who want to do something like this will come here to look and say ‘Okay, what did you do? How did you do it?’ just as a model,” Kovach said.
School leaders hope to have a grand opening later this spring or in August before school starts.
