Dive Brief:
-
Newtown, CT, issued a building permit Tuesday for construction of the building that will replace Sandy Hook Elementary School, which the town demolished after 20 children and six adults died there on Dec. 14, 2012.
-
Consigli Construction Co., which oversaw the demolition of the original 70,000 square-foot structure last fall, has begun site prep and will start construction of the new, 87,000-square-foot building in March. The school is expected to open for the fall 2016 school year.
-
The contractor has fenced off the property and posted security guards so passersby cannot see or photograph the construction site. No ceremony accompanied the groundbreaking. Town officials have said they want to protect the privacy of Newtown citizens.
Dive Insight:
“This project is about much more than a new building,” said Consigli Construction Co. President Anthony Consigli, who noted that the builder, the architects and other “stakeholders” in the $50 million project have been “highly engaged with the community and appointed and elected officials.”