The Centralia School Board voted last week to approve the schematic design for Centralia High School and has committed to building two full-sized gyms at Fords Prairie and Jefferson Lincoln elementary schools.
The upcoming construction was a topic at the board of directors meeting on Wednesday, March 21.
The district hopes to have groundbreaking ceremonies for construction on both Jefferson-Lincoln and Fords Prairie elementary schools sometime in May.
Heather Hocklander and Mary Bisenius from BCRA Design presented design updates for the elementary schools to the board at the March 21 meeting. They said they want Jefferson-Lincoln to have a “home atmosphere” and a sense of connection. The theme is “feeling at home in nature.”
At Fords Prairie, the designers went with a treehouse approach, but still something that feels like “home.”
“Imagine you’re a student on the second floor,” Bisenius said. “You’re looking through a circular window out of your treehouse.”
Superintendent Mark Davalos commented that he liked the designs.
“Even though there are a lot of design similarities, the different colors and materials separate them,” Davalos said. “I really like that.”
Forma Construction also presented the site logistics plans for both elementary schools. After the presentation, Davalos announced the district is committing to the construction of two full-sized gyms at the elementary schools. The gyms at each school will be separate from the facilities’ multipurpose rooms.
BLRB Architects presented the schematic design for Centralia High School as well. Part of the design was to identify a new drop-off lane and a new main entrance.
There are currently multiple levels in the high school, but after construction the entire school will be one level. The architects also plan to increase the size of the classrooms.
The board approved the schematic design, and construction is set to begin in the fall or winter of 2018.
After spring break, the south parking lot at Centralia High School will be unavailable. The district will begin putting portable buildings in that parking lot. Students may still park in the north lot. There is added staff parking in the bus lane on the south end of the building.
In February 2017, voters approved a $74 million bond to construct two new K-6 elementary schools to replace Fords Prairie and Jefferson-Lincoln. The bond will fund a full remodel of the high school as well.
