With school children as the backdrop, Guthrie Public Schools broke ground Wednesday afternoon for the new Cotteral Elementary.
Members of the community turned to the school’s playground where the next school building will be constructed. Just feet away from the building that opened in 1950.
“This has to be one of the greatest days that I have experienced since being on this board,” Board of Education President Ron Plagg said from the podium in front of children wearing construction hats and t-shirts that read Dream .. Believe .. Achieve.
“We hope and we will promise to fulfill the pledge we have made to the taxpayers, to the citizens, to the community, but most importantly to these children right here,” Plagg said turning to the kids who also recalled when he attended school some 50 years ago. “To do more and be better as a school district. If we do that, then we have accomplished our goal.”
Plagg said the new Cotteral comes at the right time.
“(Cotteral) has stood the test of time, but I think it’s safe to say it’s time to move on. It’s time to move on.”
Superintendent Dr. Mike Simpson shared the timeline of school buildings for the school district by reflecting on Cotteral being built in 1950, then Guthrie High School in 1967, and Guthrie Upper Elementary School in 1989.
Now with two consecutive, highly successful bond elections, including the last bond in April 2019, the school district will have opened Charter Oak Elementary in 2018 and the future Cotteral Elementary in 2025.
Simpson says the school will allow for an additional 200 students for a capacity of 500 students.
“That is a critical aspect as we grow in this community,” Simpson said. “It provides modern amenities for our students.”
The superintendent added the building will address many safety needs, including a tornado shelter in the gymnasium.
The gymnasium will include a full-size basketball court to provide additional space for Junior High basketball and volleyball teams to practice.
Crosslands Construction Company will begin preparing the site on Dec. 18 with construction beginning in January from the architect design from the Stacy Group, who designed Charter Oak Elementary.
Construction is expected to take 18 months.
Once students are in the new building that will have 20 classrooms, the old building will come down and, in its place, will allow for a parking lot (64 spots), bus lane, and playground.
A second parking lot, that will hold 43 spaces, will be built (southwest) just across the street from the school.
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