Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Ore. District Breaks Ground on Two New Elementary Schools

  • By Matt Jones
  • 04/19/21

The Hermiston School District, located in Hermiston, Ore., celebrated the groundbreaking of two new elementary schools last week. One replacement facility and one new facility are both set to open in the Eastern Oregon district in 2022.

The replacement facility is a new home for Rocky Heights Elementary. It will have a capacity of 600 students and measure in at 73,500 square feet. The $23-million building will be one story and contain 24 classrooms, a library, a gym, and other student common areas. The building will be constructed at the former site of the current school’s athletic fields. Students will continue attending school in the existing building for the 2021-22 academic year until the new school opens in fall 2022. The existing Rocky Heights Elementary was built in 1962 and faces a multitude of maintenance and security issues, according to the East Oregonian.

The other construction is for a new elementary school to be known as Loma Vista Elementary School. Loma Vista will also have capacity for 600 students and have a layout very similar to the new Rocky Heights Elementary. The school is scheduled to open in time for the 2022-23 academic year.

Funds for the construction of both buildings come from an $87.2 million bond that passed in 2019. The bond will also fund a new softball complex for the district, a new classroom annex at Hermiston High School, the purchase of additional property for future construction projects, and upgrades to parking areas at several schools in the district. The district is partnering with BBT Architects for design and Kirby Nagelhout Construction Co. for construction.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Spaces4Learning Trends & Predictions for Educational Facilities in 2026: Part I

    We asked, you answered, and the results are in! Last year, we put out a call for submissions to collect our readership’s opinion on trends and predictions for K–12 and higher education facilities in 2026.

  • New Arizona Fine Arts School Reaches Construction Milestone

    Construction of the new Hilltop School for the Arts and Theater in Litchfield Park, Ariz., recently hit a significant milestone, according to a news release. The Agua Fria High School District held a beam-signing ceremony to celebrate the building’s topping out, or the placement of its last structural beam.

  • Houston-Area High School Breaks Ground on 117,000SF Multi-Use Facility

    North Shore Senior High School, part of Galena Park ISD in Houston, Texas, recently broke ground on a new multi-use facility for student extracurriculars, according to a news release. The North Shore Multi-Use Facility will include dedicated practice and training space for the school’s athletics and fine arts programs.

  • Ohio State University Opens 26-Story Hospital

    The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center recently opened in Columbus, Ohio, standing 26 stories and covering 1.9 million square feet, according to a university news release. The project marks ten years of effort and is the university’s largest single-facility construction project ever.