It was a beautiful day for a groundbreaking. Board Members for the School District of Manatee County and other distinguished guests attended a ceremonial “moving of the dirt” at the site of North River High School in Parrish.

 

 

 

The new high school will be located on 98 acres at Martha Road and Erie Road. It is projected to open to students in August of 2019.

 

 

 

 

 

Guests were treated to a chocolate shovel – and a chance to be part of the first groundbreaking for the School District since Braden River High School, which opened in 2005.

 

 

North River High School will be able to accommodate 2,000 students – with the ability to expand to 2,400. The total project budget is $90 million, which was made possible with help from Manatee County citizens’ approval of the half-cent sales tax renewal for District capital needs.

 

 

SchenkelShultz Architecture designed the two-story brick school. Gilbane Building Company will manage its construction.

 

 

North River High School’s Auditorium will be able to seat more than 800 people. The high school will offer academic programs such as Automotive, Health, Agriculture and Engineering.

 

 

The vehicle queue will be longer than one-mile to insure that parents and students are safely away from public roadways during drop-off and pick-up times.

 

 

A football and soccer stadium will seat 3,000 home fans and 1,000 visitors. There will also be a rubber running track, which will presumably be the site of future state competitions.

 

 

Today’s ceremony was streamed live on Facebook. Mike Barber, Director of Communications, served as emcee.

 

 

 

Afterwards, School Board members and other District officials dug into the earth with shovels to ceremoniously begin construction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We will continue to update the community on the progress of North River High School. Stay tuned!

#WeManatee stands for We are the School District of Manatee County. No matter what challenges we face, we strengthen each other when we stand together.