District officials told the Franklin Board of Education on Oct. 22 that construction tied to last year’s referendum is moving into visible stages at Franklin High School and at the new Community Education and Recreation Center.

The district’s administrator, Dr. Bennett, said contractors from CD Smith had installed perimeter fencing and begun demolition of the existing high-school pool, adding, "The fences are up" and that demolition would continue for about three weeks. He said earthwork and foundation excavation are expected to start the week of Nov. 3, weather permitting, and that mass excavation should wrap around mid-December.

The construction timetable is tied to permits the district is completing with the city. Dr. Bennett said the district worked with its owners’ representative, Cadence Consulting, to install cameras "on the outside and inside" of the high-school site to record progress and generate time-lapse video of the work.

The district has restricted access inside the fence to approved personnel and limited student movement across certain campus areas for safety. Dr. Bennett said the district will publish safety and access information in a special district newsletter and in the staff newsletter Franklin Fine. He notified the board that the official groundbreaking is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Nov. 10 outside Sullivan Stadium.

Separately, construction at the Community Education and Recreation Center (CERC) is progressing, Dr. Bennett said, with interior walls and offices in place. The district plans a ribbon-cutting for the rec center at 10 a.m. on Dec. 4 and intends to hold a separate ribbon-cutting for the wellness center in January, likely on the staff professional-development day. Dr. Bennett said the wellness center will have a soft opening earlier in January before its formal ribbon cutting.

The board heard no formal motions tied to construction at the Oct. 22 meeting. Members raised no formal objections during the update, and Dr. Bennett said the district will issue regular construction communications to staff and the public as work progresses.

The updates also included community partnerships and programming: the high school marching band’s recent competition success, ongoing fire-safety visits to elementary schools by the Franklin Fire Department, and classroom grants from the Noon Lions Club of Franklin.

The board’s next meeting will include a construction progress update on Nov. 12, and the district will publish additional construction messaging to families and staff in the coming weeks.