A new middle school slated to open this fall in Port Coquitlam will be a popular local facility, boasting open air plazas, offices for community programs and gas hook-ups for barbecues, says the principal.
Todd Clerkson says most of the construction on Pitt River middle is now complete and contractors are busy putting the finishing touches to the inside fixtures and the exterior cladding of the $20-million school.
"People are asking me, 'When will it be finished?' Unfortunately, I don't have a hard and fast date," he said.
Clerkson said students are excited about moving into the new building later this fall but for now, both they and their teachers will be back in their old classrooms when school resumes next Tuesday.
The new building has been designed with middle school students in mind, with floor-to-ceiling windows and skylights, as well as rooms that open up to one another for projects and to enhance collaboration between classrooms.
Clerkson is also excited about the plaza that will be dotted with trees and encourage open air learning and mingling. School District 43 will have an aboriginal welcome centre at the school, with offices for staff who work with First Nations students, and a centre of sports excellence with the introduction of the PoCo Sport Alliance.
But Pitt River middle isn't the only new building in the works.
Also under construction is the new Eagle Mountain middle school slated to open next fall in Anmore; and the district is hoping for confirmation this fall for seismic work on Sir Frederick Banting, Montgomery and Minnekhada middle schools as well as Irvine elementary.
