BUCKINGHAM, Fla. — Buckingham's Riverdale High School is getting a complete overhaul - the largest in Lee County School District history.
And I got a tour of the construction there to see how upgrades like a state-of-the-art science building and new gym are set to elevate learning. Watch my full report here...
Crews worked left and right and the sounds of construction echoed through the halls as the school’s principal, Scott Cook, showed us around. Cook said the school hasn’t seen an overhaul this extensive since it was built in 1972, and the aging infrastructure was affecting science classes.
“No gas lines. Water didn’t work. They weren’t ADA compliant. Just did not meet the needs of regular science curriculum, and definitely didn’t meet the needs of the high level of science curriculum we get into through the IB Program,” Cook explained. Now, Cook said they will have 14 brand-new science classrooms to kick-off the school year.
Next, we checked out the new gym - Cook said it will solve space limitations.
“This gym will be up to the size of 1,600 seats. Whenever our students in boys and girls basketball made the playoffs, we couldn’t play at our home gym because the state has a certain size capacity requirement,” said Cook. Plus, Cook said the old gym will be converted to a multi-use facility for other sports.
On the tour, we also got a look at the cafeteria with new kitchens and 30% more seating, updated administrative office space, the hallways were redone with new plumbing and HVAC, and Cook mentioned a safety improvement parents will appreciate.
“There will be a stacking lane on the side of Buckingham, so our parents that are waiting to get into the school will not have to park on the side of Buckingham,” said Cook.
While the science building will be completed soon, Cook said other upgrades won’t be ready until next August. But, he said there’s a plan to make sure students stay safe during the renovations.
“They do primary walkways to keep students a certain distance away from construction. We’ll be utilizing portables for one more year, to bring students out for swing space to open up areas of the school,” Cook said.
Once the construction is done, Cook said the school will have more capacity without needing portables, and the space they took up will turn into practice fields and volleyball courts.
