The Ashland (Massachusetts) district has replaced the aging David Mindess Elementary School with a new campus.
MetroWest Daily News reports that completion of the new school comes seven years after the process of getting a new school building started.
"We wanted to replace the Mindess School due to its age and ADA compliance," said Ashland Superintendent of Schools Jim Adams.
Enrollment growth was also a factor in the need for a new school, which serves grades 3 to 5 and was built in 1954.
Mindess' enrollment totaled 644 students during 2022-23. That's up from 608 students in 2015-16. The capacity of the old Mindess School's was about 590.
The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) awarded Ashland Public Schools a $26.2 million grant in 2020 to help pay for a new school. In January 2021, voters approved funding for the new building.
The new building cost between $80 million and $82 million, according to Adams.
After its 1954 construction, the Mindess School was converted to a high school two years later before eventually reverting back to an elementary school. The school has undergone renovations, most recently in 1995.
Partnering with the MSBA enabled the district to address its facility deficiencies at half the cost, according to the school project's website.
