Granite School District shows near-complete Dry Dock campus; move-in expected in months

A Granite School District staff member gave a video tour of progress at the Dry Dock campus, saying the district is "just a couple of months away" from opening the new facility and that planners are discussing how to celebrate the old and new buildings.

The district representative described completed and near-complete spaces across athletics, performing arts and academics. Key work includes installation of fencing and padding around the baseball and softball fields, benches and dugout fittings, a turf practice field built on a road-base (dirt and gravel) sublayer, an operational pool with the deck poured to within about 3 feet of the water line, and a 600-seat retractable section in the auditorium.

The new campus replaces a school the staff member said the district has occupied for "a hundred plus years," and the tour emphasized spaces designed for both performance and instruction, including art display cases along a main hallway, indoor and outdoor kilns in art classrooms, multiple student collaboration rooms, specialized athletic training and locker-room spaces, coaches’ offices with private restroom and shower access, and a daytime preschool classroom with an adjacent fenced play area and observation space for high school students.

"We're just a couple of months away," the staff member said. "As we get those things planned, we will absolutely make sure that we advertise them out to the community." They added the district had no "massively specific plans" for opening celebrations at the time of the tour.

Details from the site tour

- Athletics: Padding is installed along field fencing and dugout benches are in place; infield material for the baseball and softball fields remains to be brought in. The practice field will receive synthetic turf laid over a compacted dirt-and-gravel base. The pool contains some water, and the staff member said crews left the final three feet of the deck unpoured so the pool’s water pressure can help settle surrounding concrete before finishing.

- Performing arts: The auditorium includes approximately 600 retractable seats at the rear and a dividing wall that can create two separate performance spaces. The district confirmed it will install netting for the pit orchestra so live musicians can play during musicals. The foyer has fixed seating and copper paneling at the concessions and ticket booth.

- Academics and student spaces: Hallways include display cases for student artwork; art classrooms feature ventilated studios and both indoor and outdoor kilns. Multiple student collaboration rooms sit at the center of classroom "neighborhoods," with carpeting and flexible furniture chosen to support group projects and cross-curricular work.

- Support spaces: The athletic training room includes a wet area and tile work, locker rooms have damage-resistant wall finishes and display areas for team information, and coaches’ offices have colored accent walls, whiteboards and carpeting.

- Early childhood program: The site includes a daytime preschool classroom, a fenced play area with a play set, and an observation connection to a high school classroom to allow students to gain practical experience working with young children. The district described this as a daytime program, not a full-time preschool.

What the district emphasized and next steps

The presenter repeatedly emphasized finishing details and site work remain, particularly the infield fill for baseball/softball and final exterior concrete. The district said celebration plans for the old and new buildings were under discussion but not finalized. The staff member said crews and designers were continuing to make progress and that the district planned to return with another update in roughly two months.

No formal decisions, votes or funding changes were announced during the tour portion of the meeting; the presentation focused on construction progress and facility features.