The Central Okanagan School District is finalizing plans for a new middle school in Lake Country.
H.S. Grenda Middle School, named after a revered teacher who passed away in 2006, has room for 600 students between the grades of 6 and 8.
The $36 million facility will be built on Bottom Wood Lake Road.
Construction is expected to begin by this summer but planners are still seeking input on how the interior of the three-storey school will be designed.
The structure’s footprint, the area of ground it occupies, was minimized to maximize greenspace, according to the district, but there were site restrictions as well.
The 18-acre former golf course site purchased for the future school is in the Agriculture Land Reserve.
While it was rezoned by the District of Lake Country, it can only accommodate the school’s playing fields.
The school will be built behind George Elliot Secondary School next door.
Area residents came out to an information meeting on Tuesday evening.
“Without question, the Lake Country community is very excited,” School District 23 (SD23) superintendent Terry Beaudry said. “This is a state of the art school. It’s built on 21st century learning principles with learning commons, learning studios even learning stairs where there’s an opportunity to have a variety of places in the school for students to engage in learning.”
In 2013, SD23 recognized Lake Country schools needed to keep up with a growing population.
By 2018, schools in the community reported operating at 125 per cent capacity.
Construction on H.S. Grenda Middle School is expected to begin in May and be complete for the 2021 school year, when an influx of at least 500 new students is expected in the community.
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