Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

High School Breaks Ground on New Academic Building for $66.8M Construction Project

  • By Matt Jones
  • 06/29/21

School and public officials celebrated a groundbreaking ceremony this week on a new academic building for Clinton High School in Clinton, Iowa. The groundbreaking marks the start of a campus overhaul that will occur in phases, and the full scope of the $66.8-million project is scheduled to be complete by fall 2025. The three-story academic building will house about 75% of the school’s academic classes and is slated to be finished by winter 2022.

Students will continue attending classes in the existing building, adjacent to the construction site, until 2022. Once the new building is ready, the majority of the school’s academic programs will transfer there, and the current academic building will be mostly demolished. Superintendent Gary DeLacy notes that the school’s gym and pool will remain undisturbed. “You’ll have that two-and-a-half-year dance of construction going on, and we’re still conducting business here,” he said.

Once the current academic building is razed, another phase of construction will fill that spot with new buildings that will house a technology education center, a performing and fine arts center, and a commons area. “It will be close to a four-year process to get that all taken care of,” said DeLacy.

The Clinton community passed the project in March 2020, voting for a bond referendum that paid for about $38.7 million of the project. DeLacy commented that because of the coronavirus pandemic, the final cost of the project came in higher than expected, but not by enough to prevent the work from moving forward.

Additional funds are coming from a one-cent sales tax and funds from the Physical Plant and Equipment Levy.

“It’s huge for economic development,” said Mayor Scott Maddaison. “One of the first questions that a site selector or someone coming in is they want to know what the schools look like. It’s just going to be huge to be able to show that off as folks are looking to come to our community.”

The architects for the project are Frevert-Ramsey-Kobes Architects and Engineers, and construction will be done by Tricon Construction of Dubuque.

About the Author

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

Featured

  • Minnesota Middle School Finishes $23.5M Addition and Modernization

    Highland Park Middle School in St. Paul, Minn., recently announced the completion of a $23.5-million addition and remodel project, according to a news release. Saint Paul Public Schools partnered with ATS&R Planners, Architects & Engineers for its design and Kraus-Anderson for its construction.

  • Utah Valley University Opens New Engineering Building

    Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, recently held a grand-opening ceremony for the new Scott M. Smith Engineering Building, according to a news release. The facility is one of the largest engineering buildings in the state at almost 200,000 square feet, and it plays home to the university’s Smith College of Engineering and Technology (SCET).

  • Pitzer College

    Designing for Change in Higher Ed Learning Environments

    Higher education will continue to evolve, and learning environments must evolve with it. By prioritizing adaptable infrastructure, thoughtful reuse, strong energy performance, and wellness-centered design, campuses can create spaces that support learning today while remaining flexible for the future.

  • Texas State University Completes Stadium Renovations

    Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas, recently announced that it has completed a series of additions and renovations to its football stadium, according to a news release. Formerly known as the Bobcat Stadium End Zone Complex, the Johnny and Nathali Weisman Football Performance Center is an 85,000-square-foot expansion featuring hospitality spaces, banquet spaces, exterior concourses, and upgrades to the field house.