“At first glance it is difficult to believe that Crescent Harbor Elementary School will be bustling with students next week, when Oak Harbor students return from winter break. On Monday, an electrician perched on a ladder, adding some final adjustments to his work, and a communications contractor was faced with stacks of boxes containing telephones that still needed to be installed.The fire alarm insisted upon going off at six o’clock in the morning.Yet the bright, newly refurbished buildings will be ready when the school bell rings on Monday morning, according to Gary Goltz, construction supervisor for Oak Harbor School District. As Goltz explained the two-million-dollar remodel, it became apparent that all of the last-minute work is very minor.The building…from the outside doesn’t show a lot of changes, Goltz began, but we did a lot inside. The school now has new heating, ventilation, electrical, telephone and computer systems, as well as some structural upgrades to help it withstand a possible earthquake. We really worked more on infrastructure, Goltz said.In addition, new lighting and windows have made the facility more energy efficient. Double pane windows are better insulators than the old single pane, and overhead classroom lighting is triggered by sensors, turning on when motion is detected and off when no one is in the room. These are ways we have addressed energy conservation, Goltz said. (The school district) sees that this issue is ongoing, he added, referring to power shortages and higher energy prices.New paint and some new flooring have given the school that new-building smell. But the smell won’t last long, considering the ventilation system completely changes the air in each room every five minutes. Staff and students will be breathing clean air, free from molds and other environmental contaminants.It’s all topped off with a new roof.Some of the changes make the facilities more functional. The office area changed quite a bit, Goltz stated, pointing out a nicer nurse’s office and a work space for office staff. The principal’s office remained the same, according to Goltz, but is now newly painted and carpeted. Teachers have a work room near the teachers’ lounge, with brand new restrooms, a union requirement, explained Goltz.The remodel of Crescent Harbor Elementary is part of the capital projects underway in the district. Six schools are being re-worked in succession, with Clover Valley Elementary School slated next. The projects are funded by a bond passed by voters in May 1996, in addition to matching funds from the State. Sixty-five percent of the (Crescent Harbor project) cost was paid by state matching funds, Goltz said.Once the capital projects as a whole are completed, the district will determine how much money is left over in each project’s 5 percent contingency fund. This extra money will go for further improvements to each remodeled school, for items that were not covered in the construction budgets. The expected completion of the capital projects is summer, 2003.You can reach News-Times reporter Christine Smith at csmith@whidbeynewstimes.com or call 675-6611 “