PORT NECHES — A highly visible corner in Port Neches will soon welcome visitors and fans to the school district.

The corner of Magnolia Avenue and Merriman Street in Port Neches features a totem pole created by welding students at Port Neches-Groves High School as well as a large letter “I” at its foot.

Personnel with the Port Neches-Groves Independent School District’s maintenance department are currently working to enhance the corner to better be a source of pride in the community.

Jeff Bergeron, director of maintenance for the district, said the project includes a wall that will feature a large Indian head disc, the letters “PNG,” and the U.S. and Texas flags. On top of the wall will be the phrase “Welcome to the Reservation.”

“When (Superintendent) Dr. (Rodney) Cavness called about the idea I said, OK, let’s make an impact, make this thing represent us,” Bergeron said. “Taxpayers expect us to have great facilities and great grounds as well as anything that represents us.”

Bergeron and the department did their homework so as to stay away from pipelines that move through the area to nearby refineries and industrial plants.

It was Kyle Overturf, a maintenance department employee, who designed the wall.

“It’s in my nature to be a creative person and while repainting the totem I began to visualize possibilities to make the area look better,” Overturf said. Soon he was putting the ideas to paper and after a few tweaks, created a 3D model.

Bailey Buchanan came in and created the 9-foot concrete wall, Bergeron said, and about 90 percent of the project is from repurposed items within the district.

The 6-foot tall Indian head disc was once in front of the auditorium at the high school. It was taken down during past renovations and placed into storage. Since the disc is fiberglass it was easy to refresh with a coat or two of paint.

The letters to be used came from different campuses and refreshed as well.

Lighting will be added that will shine on the flags during the night and there will be a surveillance camera at the site.

Bergeron credits staff that juggles different duties: Jackie Havard, Kyle Overturf, Royce Robbins, Jay Hansen and Dudley LeBlanc.

The project was to have kicked off late April to early May but weeks of rainy weather delayed the start. The maintenance department remains busy year round, especially during the summer when students are out of school. Bergerson said work on the project takes place during any down time.

“We want people who come here along the highway to the high school, see this,” he said. “Those who come here for competition will say ‘wow, that’s impressive, they have pride in their school.’”

Mary Meaux: 409-721-2429

Twitter: @MaryMeaux@PANews