Casa Grande Elementary School District and partners McCarthy Building Companies and SPS+ Architects recently broke ground on the new Saguaro Elementary School and Casa Grande Middle School campus in Casa Grande, Ariz.
Built more than 40 years ago, the schools need extensive modernization in order to improve the learning environment for students and staff. Saguaro Elementary School has 525 students in grades K-5th, and Casa Grande Middle School has approximately 580 students in 6th through 8th grades.
Dr. JoEtta Gonzales, superintendent of the Casa Grande Elementary School District, expressed her appreciation for efforts of everyone involved in the project. “This has been a tremendous team effort and we are grateful to the community for supporting this project and for the hard work of our staff, our parents and families.”
The campus modernization project will allow the two schools to share some spaces on a 46-acre campus for cost-efficiency, including the administration offices, media center and the cafeteria. A committee of Casa Grande citizens recommended the shared campus modernization project after considering factors such as renovation costs, long-term use of the facility, and community needs. The design includes new school buildings constructed atop the middle school’s current athletic fields and an assortment of 270 new parking spaces carved out of where some of the middle school’s classrooms presently reside. The new school design will separate elementary and middle school classrooms.
“We’re honored to work with the Casa Grande community, which clearly values education and being engaged in renovation of their school campus,” said David Petersen, vice president of operations for McCarthy Building Companies Southwest Education Services. “Thanks to their participation and input, the district’s planning committee has developed a vision for the new combined school campus that will bring great improvements, which we are looking forward to delivering.”
“Throughout this year, we’ve been able to dig in and really understand the fabric of the Casa Grande community by collaborating with district staff and stakeholders,” said Mark Davenport, partner of SPS+ Architects. “We believe this new facility will be one they can be proud of for many years to come.”
The project is being funded by a bond measure that was approved in the November 2016 election to fund district facility improvements. Completion of the project is slated for the summer of 2018.
