Spring 2009 Potomac Term - Potomac School

News On Campus
New Lower School
Taking Shape
Glimpses through windows, through cracks in
construction fences and above the roofs offer
a hint of what’s to come as construction crews
labor steadily to build our new Lower School.
What started with a groundbreaking ceremony
last spring has evolved into a sprawling construction
site filled with busy workers.
You can see windows and roofs on all wings,
and framing of all classrooms is complete. Each
classroom will feature big windows and access to
the outside. The new building is slated to be ready
for classes to begin in the fall. “This is a dramatic
time, because we go from essentially a hole in the
ground to a functional structure,” says Facilities
Administrator Perry Swope. “The weather has
been cooperating, which helps keep everything
on track.”
Workers will begin the landscaping, playgrounds
and parking lots this spring. Swope is
pleased to report that the large trees he worked to
save next to the site are still thriving. Another 18
mature trees from the Lower School playground
were moved to new locations campuswide.
Though there will still be some inconveniences
for the community through the end of the school
year, it is exciting to see the buildings and grounds
take shape over the course of the spring. Swope
reports that the bus square will be reconfigured
this summer to relieve the current traffic bottleneck
in the middle of campus.
The new Lower School, under construction for most of
this school year, will be completed in time for classes
to begin in September.
The old Lower School will be torn down after
the school year ends (see article on our farewell
event on the inside back cover).
24 The Potomac Term