“Everyone is looking
forward to the update, it’s
exciting,” Dorosko continues.
“The school has done a really
good job of transitioning
everyone — it’s still the same
family of teachers and the
kids are very comfortable,
even though it’s removed.”
From a new facade
and new media centers to
upgraded security functionality and the addition of a second floor,
the makeover will be extensive. The old building will now be the
support for another level, yet the aesthetic and character of the
school will not be lost.
Leanne Lawrence, director of Facility Planning and
Construction of New Hanover County Schools, commends
builder Monteith Construction for both expeditious work and
sensitivity to community needs.
“We’re pleased to be working with the Monteith team on this
project,” Lawrence says. “They make the process a lot simpler
with a tremendous attitude of partnership toward the district
and community. And their heart is in it. It’s personal to them
and it shows in their interaction with us.”
Lawrence indicates that the process of moving the school’s students at the beach
to Blair was smooth and believes that one of the greatest benefits was that it brought all of the students back
together under one roof.
“There were more students in nine portable units and at the church than in the actual school,” he says. “It’s
an exciting project because it will be a significant change to that campus. But it’ll be a great change because it
will bring cohesion, and all of the staff are very excited. It’s going to be a whole new world. Site and prep work
continues but, in the fall, things will start going vertical quite rapidly.”
Mike Barden, owner of Surf City Surf Shop, attended WBS as have his own three children. He occasionally
took his children to class by boat, a memory from his own childhood. However, he sees few negatives despite
the temporary relocation.
“Now that the bus is coming to pick the kids up, it gives me an extra 20 minutes with them in the morn-ing,”
he says. “In that respect, we’ve lost some of the quaintness, but we’ve also gained more family time. The
transition to Blair has been absolutely amazing. And I attribute that to the school, the teachers and principal.
They did a really good job at alleviating anxieties, talking about it openly and explaining what expectations
would be.”
Children will return to the same small-town charm of Coral Drive in fall 2020, but when they do they will
enter a modernized, safer, state-of-the-art learning facility with a brighter future ahead.
32
WBM september 2019
Above: The site plan
and a crew from
Monteith Construction
erects structural steel
on the north side of
Wrightsville Beach
Elementary School
in August. Below: A
rendering of the west
elevation shows how
the second floor will
be integrated with the
existing building.
SAWYER, SHERWOOD AND ASSOCIATE ARCHITECTURE
ALLISON POTTER SAWYER, SHERWOOD AND ASSOCIATE ARCHITECTURE