BOUNTIFUL—As the school year begins, so does construction on the new Bountiful Elementary. Construction on the new building will take place west of the existing school and when it is complete the old building will be torn down.

“It’s the oldest school in the district,” said Bryan Turner, Architectural Services Director for the Davis School District. “It will be nice to replace it. Some areas are worn out and tired.”

The new school will be modernized with state-of-the-art learning spaces, he said. “It will have extra security, air conditioning and the latest and greatest technology.”

It will be similar in size and number of classrooms as Odyssey Elementary, said Turner. “Right now there are 24 classrooms and portables. This will have 32 classrooms and extra spaces. We hope we don’t have to have any portables.”

A rendering of the new Bountiful Elementary. Rendering courtesy of VCBO

Turner said they hope the extra space will encourage team teaching. “Teachers won’t just have one classroom they’ll have four. That will allow for breakouts that they can’t physically do in the existing building.”

Plans have been modified a little bit to fit the space, he said. “After it is finished and the old building is torn down, we’ll put in a new playground, playing fields and parking lot.”

Depending on materials and supplies the project is anticipated to be completed in January 2025, said Turner. “There are certain materials like electrical that have a long lead time. We’ll get the new furniture and set things up in February or March and then move into the new building. Tear down will be in August 2025.”

The old school has served the district well, he said. “It’s outdated in a lot of different ways. The new building will have updated safety and will be brought up to seismic code. The old building doesn't come up on any of those.”