The first day of school is August 28, and school and city officials said both Danbury High School and ACE will open on time.
Today workers are installing windows and removing debris from Danbury High School. At the Alternative Center for Excellence, new gutters were installed in the roof, and workers are preparing to seal in the carpentry work they've completed.
"We'll be open no problem," said Danbury High School Principal Gary Bocaccio.
Bocaccio said teachers don't need to set up their classrooms in July. He said if the window project is completed by mid-August, as it is scheduled to end, that will give teachers plenty of time.
Thomas Hughes, superintendent of construction services in Danbury, oversaw the High School project.
"It's weeks ahead of schedule and it's in budget," Hughes said. "We will open on time, no problem."
The high school project called for replacing school windows that were 47 or more years old. That project is part of roughly $11,500,000 approved in 2011 for school roofs, boilers and other renovations.
At ACE, the school's original gutters were built into the roof and they drained down the side of the building. After years of neglect, the gutter system failed and the water was running on the inside of the bricks and into the basement.
The old construction had to be studied to be understood and replaced.
"We got lucky," said Rick Palanzo, superintendent of buildings. "We found a consultant who was able to design a good replacement."
The old galvanized gutters were replaced with a rubber membrane designed to last 30 years. The school building was constructed in the 1880s as a neighborhood school, and the city wanted to save it.
"Both projects are going well for a change," said Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton.
