An estimated $42-million dollars worth of investments is taking shape at Erie High.

Installation of the new all weather track around Biletnikoff field, with purple lane stripes is finished and ready to go. "It's several different coats of rubber that they put down to build this up and then the striping was put on this past weekend and finally after a month of of them working...we finally got the end product here," said Neal Brokman, assistant superintendent of Erie's Public Schools.  "This just brings us up to par with what their other neighboring school districts have had, I mean I believe we probably are the last ones in Erie County to actually have an all weather track," he added.

Erie News Now got a first look at the track, the sand pits for long jump and an exclusive walk through of the construction and other improvements underway.

Those improvements include a brand new entrance to the sports complex.  It will welcome athletes and visiting teams with an Erie hall of fame featuring former athletes and trophies from Tech Memorial, Central Tech, East, Strong Vincent and Erie High, plus a ticket booth and concessions.  "It's that extra level of pride that our student athletes are now going to be able to feel," Brokman said, "because hey look everybody walks through these doors so it's gonna be part of building up what we call - you wanna be a member of the E."

New hardwood flooring is being installed in the basketball complex.  While the work to put a new smooth sub floor was underway, students have not been able to use the gymnasium for a year. Lance Brown, coach of the girls varsity basketball team said the improvements are exciting. "A lot of times we go to different schools and you see different facilities and the kids always wondered why they couldn't have a facility like other places, but now we do," Coach Brown said. "Now with this new floor, I think it's a game changer...I think we have one of the better facilities, if not the best facility in D-10."

The Erie High swimming pool, which has been out of commission for six years now, will receive a $1-million upgrade to bring it back to code, not just for the swim team which has had to practice elsewhere, but for swimming classes for Erie High students.  After the condition of the pool was assessed by an expert, that work is just getting underway. "Just to bring this up to code so that we can use it in competitions as well as in swim classes that's how the $1 million figure came in and so we are pretty much at the early stages of this part of the renovation," Brokman said.

Coaches and school officials believe that all of the facilities improvements will be game changers, not just for the pride, but the culture of Erie High. Coach Brown said it's because students can see the investment and improvement all around them. "Now as things are changing, you can change with everything that's changing around here," Brown said.  "We need to change attitude, the culture and everybody's trying to work at that and I think the facilities are the first part. Like people from outside the community can see it, the kids in the building can see it, it's a little bit of a struggle right now going through the construction but things are changing.  They walk into a new classroom, there's new desks, there's new chairs the lighting's different, things are good and I think that adds to people being successful and productive."

Assistant Superintendent Brokman said pride is what the entire investment is all about. "Pride in the student body here, pride in our student athletes, and into our community because our community is worth it."