HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Having surpassed the 60 percent completion mark of the project, the Sports Arena renovation continues to move along. The building committee held its monthly meeting Thursday and got an update on the two financial setbacks that were discovered last month.

The concourse floor work should begin very soon and will take 13 weeks to complete, bringing it right up to the national tournament. The cost to lay the new floor is projected at around $250,000.

The north gymnasiums continue to sit idle while fans run continuously in an attempt to draw moisture out of the concrete floor. Plans are to take measurements until the last week of November, then decide how to best address the issue. The concrete floor is holding too much moisture, which is keeping crews from installing the wood gym floors. Depending on how much of the problem they can eliminate will determine how much it costs to fix it. The price could run as much as $90,000.

Also, at the request of one of the basketball coaches, the side goals in the main practice gym are being moved back 6 feet and will be attached to the walls on each side of the gym to give more space and use of the side goals without interfering with the full length of the court.

As a whole, the project is moving along with the visitors locker rooms nearly finished and glass going up on the south side mezzanine, along with most of the masonry work. The video boards and new sound system are being installed and should be done by the end of the month. Most of the kitchen work on the north side is finished, along with several storage areas.

While the contingency fund has taken some major blows with the floor issues, JE Dunn Construction is still confident that it will be able to come in at budget, noting that the more the major work is completed, the less chance of finding other unexpected expenses.