Memorial High School opens; board approves North Elementary design and summer capital improvements

District staff told trustees that Memorial High School is substantially complete, campuses received multiple summer capital improvements funded by the 2024 bond, and the board approved design development documents for a new North Elementary site that mirrors Ridgewood Elementary. Kevin Cotton delivered a construction update highlighting finished work at Memorial High School: landscaping and irrigation, auditorium seating and lighting, fine-arts classrooms (including a baby grand piano), corridors and protective wall panels, cafeteria serving lines and tables, AutoTech lifts and tire machines, a weight room and an indoor turf room. Cotton said the new field house and athletic facilities are set for the school year and noted a first scheduled volleyball match. Cotton also summarized work at the former ninth-grade center, converted to a middle school and fine-arts additions, and renovations at the existing Friendship High School, including new locker rooms, wrestling and cheer facilities and an indoor batting facility. He described summer capital improvements under the 2024 bond such as updated playgrounds at Westland and Crestview elementaries, a new transportation parking slab to accommodate more buses, and synthetic turf installed at Friendship Middle School. The board considered and approved design development documents for a new North Elementary that uses the Ridgewood Elementary plan on a slightly smaller site (14 acres vs. 16 acres) and approved construction documents recommendations to move ahead to the next phase. Trustees also approved the consent agenda and several routine capital-related motions during the meeting. Why it matters: The construction and capital improvements affect where students learn and how athletic and fine-arts programs operate. The Memorial High School opening and approved designs for North Elementary are multi-million-dollar investments that will shape capacity and services in the district. Next steps: Administration will bring full construction documents for North Elementary to the board and move forward with bond-funded construction phases and capital implementation scheduled in the 2024 bond program.