With over $32 million in bond expenditures this June related to construction and renovations along with building teams working seven days a week, Katy ISD is on pace to complete a variety of projects in time for the start of the 2016-17 school year, Peter McElwain, the district’s architect and planner, said.

Among the many projects  underway, McElwain highlighted seven, including KISD’s three new schools and four large renovations that combine for over 20,000 square feet in additions.

“We have an excellent staff out there working tirelessly to complete these projects for opening day,” he said.

McElwain said construction is finished on the three new schools opening for  2016-17—Jenks and Bethke elementary schools and Tays Junior High School.

Jenks and Bethke elementary schools use a new building design for the district.

The four main renovation projects include Cimarron and Memorial Parkway elementary schools, Memorial Parkway Junior High School and the Miller Career Center, McElwain said.

Construction on Cimarron Elementary School was completed this summer, while the other three are set to reopen in 2016-17 but will undergo work throughout the school year.

“A school is a nucleus for a neighborhood or a community,” McElwain said. “And all of these facilities will support a variety of functions for the campus, which will—in turn—benefit the entire school community.”