Madison School District on Sept. 30 marked the start of construction of the new $16 million, 72,000-square-foot Madison Simis Elementary School and administrative building. The project was approved by voters in the 2014 bond election.
Dozens of students at Madison Simis took turns participating in the ceremonial groundbreaking of their new school on Sept. 30. Each student at Simis that day was given the opportunity to participate and “turn the dirt” (submitted photo).
In addition, the project includes construction of a new library and media center; learning gardens and outdoor teaching space; a gathering-area courtyard; a new ball field; and a new administrative building with front office, nurse’s office, conference rooms and administrative offices.
“We notice progress daily and have enjoyed working with the McCarthy construction team and the Orcutt Winslow architectural firm,” said Madison Simis Principal Joyce Flowers. “We are so fortunate to have the best of both worlds—an established, strong, supportive community and a lovely new school.”
The new campus design includes extensive natural light in all classrooms. Efficiencies are also being incorporated into the new buildings with the goal of lowering water and energy usage, including all LED lighting, high-efficiency HVAC system and low-flow bathrooms. All classrooms will be audio-enhanced and feature multi-user interactive displays to improve sharing and collaboration in the classroom.
“We are pleased to be entering this exciting phase of construction, where the community will begin to see construction progress on this long-awaited school project,” said Justin Kelton, executive vice president of McCarthy Building Companies, Southwest division. “Our timeline is ambitious, delivering the fastest new school building of this size for our division. Thanks to our extensive pre-construction coordination systems and advanced scheduling techniques, we are ready to achieve this goal for the district and the community.”
Madison Simis Elementary serves children grades pre-kindergarten through four. In 2014, Madison Simis became authorized as an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School in the Primary Years Programme.
