From the Ground Up: Dallas County Technical Center

General contractor: DeWitt & Associates Inc.
Architect: Dake Wells Architecture Inc.
Engineers: Mettemeyer Engineering LLC, structural; Crawford, Murphy & Tilly Inc., civil; and Smith-Goth Engineers Inc., mechanical, electrical and plumbing
Size: 56,665 square feet
Estimated cost: $11 million
Lender: None
Estimated completion date: June 2021
Project description: The Dallas County R-1 School District is building a new technical center connected to Buffalo High School. Chrissy Groeteke, spokesperson for project contractor DeWitt & Associates, said the new facility would be used by students studying agriculture, auto mechanics, construction, welding, computer science, criminal justice and health services. In the spring, Dallas County voters approved to build the center through a 46-cent levy per $100 of assessed valuation for the next 25 years. Groeteke said the project includes demolishing portions of the high school in order to connect the buildings. School district Superintendent Tim Ryan said the center is an economic development project because students will be certified to work in certain trades after graduation. It’ll replace the current center in Louisburg, Ryan said.