At a cost of $75,000, new bleachers are currently being installed in the gym and will be on display for all students on Friday, which is also the day of the winter music assembly.

The price of this construction project was relatively low because the school was able to schedule it during basketball season, when the demand for new bleachers is at its lowest. Although this is difficult for the school’s basketball teams, they have still been able to practice at various other schools for their games.

The old wooden bleachers were sold to various companies that gave the school roughly $3,000 for the old materials.

The new bleachers were bought through Northwest School Equipment Inc., and were made by Interkal, which is a leading manufacturer of spectator seating in the country.

This upgrade for the gym is said to have many new improvements, with the main goal to make it safer for students. All members of La Salle know how easy it is for people to drop various things through the gaps in the old bleachers, such as their water bottles, jackets, and even phones. The new bleachers will also have multiple sets of aisles for students to walk up and down much more efficiently. In addition, instead of having to manually pull these bleachers out and back in, there will now be an option to do this mechanically, simply by pressing a button.

These bleachers also have a more pleasant look than the previous old wooden bleachers. There are 762 seats; although they are the same exact height and width as the old ones. The new ‘look’ will be blue bleachers with a red stripe traveling down them.

Mr. Winningham said, “We thank Mr. Elliott, Coach Curtis, Coach Wedin and the entire girls and boys basketball teams for their flexibility and patience in allowing us to do this work after the season has started. By shifting the work to this time frame, the school was able to save over $15,000 in installation costs that will be used to fund future improvements for the school and gymnasium!”

He added, “We also want to thank Mr. Elliott, Coach Hazel, and the football team for their help in dismantling the old bleachers. Doing this work saved the school $4,000 in demolition costs and will generate roughly $2,000 in revenue from the sale of wood and recycled metal.”

So be ready for a new and improved gymnasium during the assembly on Friday for the whole Lasallian family to enjoy.