arizona school district wants to build two new schools

The growing Buckeye Elementary School District, located roughly 36 miles to the southwest of Phoenix, wants to build a new elementary school and name it in honor of the late Arizona Senator John McCain.

The facility will be one of two new schools that the district hopes to build if voters in November approve a $54 million bond for school facility construction and facility upgrade projects.

The two new schools are expected to cost around $39 million to build.

As proposed, the bond will also fund up to $8.5 million for a series of renovations and upgrades to the district’s existing seven schools.

Those upgrades will include everything from enhancing building security and safety access points, to new science and technology labs, as well as fine arts performance spaces.

 Additional work will see the creation of collaborative workspaces for students in pre-engineering and design classes, among other disciplines.

The bond projects are the result of an ongoing citizens committee review process that prioritized the facility and infrastructure needs of the district.

The Buckeye Elementary School District currently has an enrollment of more than 5,500 students, up from just over 1,100 in the 1990s.

By Garry Boulard

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