 While no construction has officially started yet, plans for the new Gene Dillon Elementary School and Bemidji are moving quickly. Josh Peterson has more on what the school will look like and what challenges still remain. In 2014, the Bemidji School District voted to approve a tax increase to build Gene Dillon Elementary School. Fast forward to 2016 and the start of the construction has never been closer. On December 8th, the bidding process began and it's up to Krause Anderson to go over 150 plus bids to build the new school and bring their recommendations to the school board. Some of the bid packages were very competitively priced and in some cases such as structural steel were very close bids. Over the past few years, issues of communication between the city of Bemidji, Beltrami County and the school district have put the project in jeopardy. During a Bemidji City work session last November, it was decided that the city would extend utilities to Adams Avenue and the school would then run a line to connect to city services. The city negotiated a deal with the school district to not annex the school's property until the school officially connects to city services, helping the school save some money during its construction. Currently, the site of Gene Dillon Elementary School is a vacant snow-covered field, but in just a matter of two years, the all-fourth and fifth grade school will have features such as terrazzo flooring and high-tech classrooms. While stressed relations between the school district and the city of Bemidji remain, the county is looking ahead to what they need to do to ensure that its roadways are ready and safe for everyone. There will need to be some traffic improvements and we're looking at potentially the Beside a Road intersection, which is also the entrance to the new school. The county recently ran a traffic study and is currently working on recommendations that will impact Beside a Road, Division Street and Adams Avenue, but with construction happening this spring, the county has had to move quickly. It's a little quicker than normal, but I guess it's not too far out of line. I guess we already had a head start. In Bemidji, Josh Peterson, Lakeland News. The county will hold its next meeting to discuss the school and the road reconstruction projects for the new school on January 3rd. If you've enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to Lakeland Public Television.