BELLE — Maries County R-2’s new Early Childhood Center is about 95 percent complete, but district officials are still working to establish internet and telephone service at the facility.

Superintendent Dr. Lenice Basham told the Board of Education Sept. 29 that only a handful of construction items remain unfinished.

Those include installation of a second security door, exterior signage and final work on a small section of ground outside the fenced area.

Basham said the security door is still about six weeks out because of the wait for delivery, while the exterior signage is also being delayed by material availability.

Other than those items and some final site work, she said the project is nearly finished.

“We’re getting very, very close,” Basham said. “I think we’re 95 percent.”

Board members praised the appearance of the new building during the meeting, which followed a ribbon-cutting event at the Early Childhood Center.

While construction is nearing completion, Basham said the district still does not have internet service at the facility.

The lack of internet is also delaying telephone service because the phones are expected to operate through the internet connection.

Basham said the district cannot simply extend its existing MOREnet service to the site because the Early Childhood Center does not yet have the federal address designation required for that service.

According to Basham, the district applied for that designation approximately six months ago but has been told the process can take about 18 months.

As a result, the district is attempting to establish service through Starlink.

“We’re trying to use Starlink and trying to get that set up so that there is some service out there,” Basham said.

She also said there appears to have been some miscommunication over who was responsible for the technology portion of the construction project, although the building has now been wired.

Basham said getting internet and phones working at the center is a priority. She told the board traditional residential-style telephone service is no longer an option through the provider, meaning the district needs an internet-based system before phones can be activated.

“That’s a priority for me for the technology, is to make sure that they have internet and phones out there,” Basham said.

The technology discussion came as the board reviewed the district’s annual technology program evaluation.

Basham said the district currently has one full-time technology employee and a student who works half a day in the department. She said technology demands continue to grow as the district works to maintain security, networking and equipment across its buildings.

Despite the remaining technology issue, Basham said she was pleased with the progress at the early childhood center and thanked the board for supporting the program. She said she believes the district will see long-term benefits as children who attend it move into kindergarten.

Board members also credited community support for the project and the turnout for the ribbon cutting.