A team of Oconto Falls High School students on Thursday unveiled a duplex they helped construct over the past 10 months. The first tenants at 582-584 King St. will be settled in by July 1.
“I think it’s cool,” student Kyle Sharboneau said. “We built a house!”
Students, working with local contractors, were involved in every aspect of construction. It was a first-time partnership between the school district and NEWCAP, a private, nonprofit agency that assists low-income residents. NEWCAP has partnered with Oconto High School to build nine duplexes in Oconto.
“We appreciate all the effort that all of you have contributed to this, and I hope your parents will have an opportunity to go through it and see what a great job you did,” Robert Koller, NEWCAP executive director, told the students.
“I think it’s a great opportunity for the district, for the community and for the clients we serve,” said Paul Mogged, NEWCAP oversite contractor. “We get a chance to put contractors to work and give the kids some education and training.”
OFHS teacher David Heisel said the construction class tackled many projects over the past 10 years, but nothing of this size.
“They’re the first of a very important crew that took this to the next level. They really produced an amazing piece of work here, and I give them a lot of credit for that,” he said.
“It was just a good learning experience,” Sharboneau said. “Each area had its own challenges. It wasn’t easy.”
“I like doing this kind of work,” said student Brandon Kamm, who will return to the class next year to build a second duplex on King Street.
“I think it was an excellent experience for them to learn from the bottom up,” said his mother, Rachel Kamm.
The one-bedroom duplex is handicapped accessible.
Bob and Nancy Mommaerts donated the land for the duplex, and grants from the Wisconsin Division of Housing and corporate funds from NEWCAP were used.
Students in the building construction class received matching sweatshirts at Thursday’s open house and ribbon cutting and awarded an honorary sweatshirt to Mark Hillberg, of Hillberg Electric, to recognize his work with the class.
“I was very impressed with how hard these guys worked,” Hillberg said. “They didn’t have a lot of time. They’d rush out of the bus, get down here … and there was no fooling around. They got stuff, and they went to work.”
Although it was sunny and warm for the ribbon cutting, the students worked through cold and wet conditions during the project.
“I don’t know when the heat was finally turned on here, but it was not early in the winter,” Hillberg said.
He encouraged students to build upon the skills they learned by doing home maintenance projects or pursuing a career in the construction field.
Heisel said a project of this magnitude will have a long-lasting impact on the students.
“We’re not really going to know the effects of this program until maybe 10 years from now,” he said.
Categories
