Construction may be underway at the civic center, but it won’t impact visitors on July 4.
Work has begun on Phase 2A, which includes the south entrance and handicapped parking spaces behind the east wing, Mark Kolterman, Civic Center Commission chair, said.
“It won’t impede the Fourth,” he said. “The last thing they’ll do are the steps and the railing.”
The project includes adding handicap accessible ramps and automatic door openers to the south entrance to make it easier for those with physical issues to enter the building.
The construction area will be secured over the Fourth, to keep visitors from wandering through it. The new parking spaces will not be available as the concrete cures.
The elevator will still be open and available to take visitors between the floors, Kolterman said.
“We are gradually getting there,” Kolterman said. “It takes time and money.”
Once Phase 2A is completed, work can move to Phase 2B, which is finishing the basement and remodeling the kitchen. The lights, ceiling and floor will be replaced, and electronics will be updated.
The final phase will be updating the auditorium and some work in the Seward County Chamber and Development Partnership offices in the west wing.
A utilization committee has also been established to bring more use to the building and its facilities, Kolterman said.
