Snow and cold temperatures didn’t stop tribal and community members from gathering and celebrating the groundbreaking of a new school that will replace a 70-year-old building.
This is a victory for the entire community, Tribal Chairman Brian Mason said.
“We were celebrating a victory for the community on an action by the community. I mean, it wasn't a single person event that made this happen. It was the kids, the parents, the council, the elders in the community sending a message to the state of Nevada,” Mason said.
According to Design West, the architectural firm designing the project, the new two-story school will be approximately 104,000 square feet. It will include 23 classrooms, kitchen, separate cafeteria, multi-use rooms, a high school gymnasium and media center.
View a larger version of each plan in a new tab: First Floor | Second Floor | Site Plan
The site will also include outdoor play and recreation areas and a football stadium with track and field.
The new location is roughly three miles away from the current school and away from the main highway. Mason said the Idaho National Guard will do the leveling work in April before construction begins.
Owyhee Combined School was built in 1954 by the Bureau of Indian affairs. Located in a remote area near the Nevada-Idaho border, it’s part of the Elko County School District.
Over the past seven decades, the building has deteriorated due to a lack of attention and its remote location. The school currently has several issues that are dangerous for the students - including bats living on the roof and an old boiler room.
Last June, Gov. Joe Lombardo signed a bill that made an appropriation of $64.5 million to the Elko County School District to replace the Owyhee Combined School.
Mason said he hopes the new school will be complete in two years.
