When the dust settles, what was once Leander High School’s athletic facilities remains a pile of rubble.  

Citizens of Leander voted for and passed, in May of 2023, a bond worth $37,460,920, whose end goal is the renovation of the athletic facilities. 

“We’re currently building a new weight room and a new locker room,” said Adam McLain, assistant football and head wrestling coach. “Once it’s all said and done, it should hopefully be pretty nice. As a community, the city of Leander, we voted for and passed a bond. We received money from taxpayers, and that money has gone towards improving our school. That’s why [the renovations are] happening now.”

Since the construction began, it has engulfed several entrances, weight rooms, and locker rooms, disrupting the anatomy of LHS’ athletic wing. Football players have encountered difficulties regarding the teams’ movement. 

“[The construction] has affected everything, from where we put equipment, to our routines,” said football coach Dominique Sewell. “There’s also a lack of space. The kids have been focused and we’ve been able to create some good plans for everything going forward. We’ve had to be adaptable with overcoming the obstacles. Football-wise, we’ve been chugging along.”

Likewise, the volleyball players has faced setbacks since construction began, disrupting their routes to practices and equipment.

“[Volleyball] still [plays in] our gyms, however we’ve lost one of our athletic entrances,” said sophomore Amanda Gamboa. “The [entrance] that is closer to the locker rooms and weight rooms… [is blocked off]… Now we have had [to use the] weight room in the back while the front one is being worked on. Instead of using the front entrances, we have to use the back doors for morning practice.”

Although renovations have been allocated to the school’s athletic facilities, this disruption does not exist in isolation. Students in theater classes and production have endured this interference as well, due to the refurbishment of the Performing Arts Center entrance.

“Because of the construction, we can’t have the fall show in the PAC,” said sophomore Theinn Peterson. “[Our] production of The Last Roundup of the Guacamole Queens is going to be in the Black Box. It would be too hard to facilitate parking… and entrance through the PAC before January, when it’s presumed to be done. [But] we always have the Black Box, and if there is any department that can make the best of a bad situation it’s theatre. We can build and adapt… The limitations on our performance spaces… tests our ability to think positive.”

Other areas of campus are scheduled for renovation in the next couple of years.