After decades of neglect the existing century old White Sulphur Elementary school and 58-year-old Junior High/High School fell into obsolescence. In 2014, the community passed a 9.8-million-dollar bond to consolidate and renovate their existing buildings. The goal was to upgrade the overall quality, safety and effectiveness of the teaching environment.
In 2017, the three-year design and construction schedule was complete, transforming the White Sulphur Springs School District into a contemporary school that would be sustainable in the community for future generations. The new school has integrated modern access control features improving safety and security. It has upgraded all the communications, networking, and technology systems providing students with twenty first century learning. A spacious new library for community and board meetings, as well as a new gymnasium/ multi-purpose space, and a large community cafeteria provides modern HVAC and lighting that saves utility costs for the district. Lastly, the classrooms are flexible and can be adapted to new teaching environments and programs.
Some of the greatest challenges were a difficult and sloped site with marginal soil conditions and maintaining safety for the 200 hundred students that remained on the active site during construction. With detailed and accurate phasing schedules and close coordination with the school’s administration, all the community’s objectives and expectations were met. We managed to stay on budget and on schedule through the cooperation and teamwork of owner, design team and builder.