A 50-year-old school facility is undergoing a major renovation this summer.

The Mid-Prairie Middle School is renovating its kitchen to accommodate the approximate 100 more students it serves since the fifth grade was moved to the building last year. Superintendent Mark Schneider describes the two-year project, “This year the work involves, first of all cutting a serving window in between the cafeteria and the kitchen. Prior to that students actually had to go into the kitchen and out of the kitchen to get their food, so this will obviously add space to the kitchen. Approximately 250 square feet will now be available by moving the serving window between the wall of the kitchen and the cafeteria.”

This summer the school will also be replacing 50-year-old equipment such as the freezer, refrigerator, and dish washing station. Crews will also do electrical and plumbing work in preparation for the second phase next summer which includes replacing the ovens and installing hot and cold preparation stations. The Mid-Prairie School Board awarded a renovation bid of $33,386.10 to Chris Schlabach Construction and an equipment bid of $103,681 to Rapids Foodservice Contract and Design. All of the remodeling will be funded from the Secure an Advanced Vision for Education (SAVE) stream, while the equipment is being split between SAVE and nutrition funds.