GALLARY — Proposed Bridge City Middle design outlines 2nd floor gym, less traffic congestion
Published 12:38 am Wednesday, July 20, 2022
BCISD school board member Mark Anderson gets a closer look at the design for the middle school. (Chris Moore/The Leader)
The slide shows a view from above of the middle school footprint and surrounding area. (Chris Moore/The Leader)
The picture shows the rendering of the third floor of the new middle school. (Chris Moore/The Leader)
The second floor of the new middle school will hold the gym and fine arts programs. (Chris Moore/The Leader)
Board members saw a rendering of the new middle school. (Chris Moore/The Leader)
The first floor of the proposed middle school. The pink area is the cafeteria; red is the administration; dark yellow is specialty classes and light yellow is other classrooms. (Chris Moore/The Leader)
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BRIDGE CITY — Bridge City School Board members got their first looks at what a new middle school could look like during a presentation by Claycomb Associates.
The architecture company received positive reviews as board members looked at the first draft of a virtual rendering of the proposed middle school.
One unique feature Claycomb proposed was to have the athletic gyms on the second floor of the building. The design would prevent the hardwood floors from being damaged in the event of a flood.
The school’s fine arts programs like band, theater and choir would also be on the second floor. Representatives for the architectural firm said having the gyms on the second floor is not common, but added they have seen it done in other schools.
The building will have multiple staircases and an elevator.
The company proposed a three-story building (in sections) due to the limited footprint for the new middle school, which would locate across the street from the current middle school.
The footprint features two long driveways for car drop off and pickup on the front side of the building and allow for bus pickup and drop off for the backside of the school.
At the current middle school site, the gym and library would be kept to repurpose. The site will also have a practice field with the rest of the area left to provide as much parking as possible.
Superintendent Mike Kelly said the long driveways help alleviate some of the traffic backup parents see during school days.
“That stacking zone can hold about 150 cars or so,” he said. “We may have 15 now at the middle school. That is what causes all of that backup all around. They will be able to come all the way down and loop around the back.”
The cafeteria will sit closest to the road and will be the holding spot for drop off and pickup.
The design also allows for plenty of covered outside area for the school to utilize under the gym overhang and on the backside near the art wing.
Kelly previously said the design phase would take a few months before the projects go out to bid at the beginning of next year, with the goal of having the construction complete by August 2024.
— By Chris Moore
