This summer, Downers Grove High School District 99’s two schools–Downers Grove North and Downers Grove South–will undergo major renovations and additions that will bring new classrooms, expanded cafeterias and more office space to each of the schools. By the end of the project next summer, each school will have 33 percent more floor space than before.
Ground was broken on the $40.5 million project last fall, and this year a compacted schedule allowed classes to end early (before the Memorial Day weekend) so construction crews could get a head start on their summer work.
School officials estimate they are about one-third of the way through the project. The steel skeletons of each addition are finished, and masons are beginning brick work on those wings. Concrete floor slabs also have been poured, and the administrative offices at Downers North have been moved to portable trailers (the offices at Downers South will stay put).
District 99 spokeswoman Faith Behr said the project is on schedule, and that students should be able to move into their new and renovated classrooms by the beginning of classes in the fall. By January, the fine arts areas and fieldhouses will be open for use.
Other aspects of the renovation:
– New classrooms that will eliminate portables.
– New science labs.
– Resource centers where students can work on computers and receive help from teachers or tutors, as well as foreign language listening labs.
– Music rooms for rehearsals and storage.
– Fieldhouses with additional space for athletics and consolidated locker rooms.
– Improved water mains and heating.
– Expanded cafeterias, more lockers and common areas for students.
– Improved student and public access to buildings.
