From the Ground Up: Strafford R-VI School District HPER Building

Owner/developer: Strafford R-VI School District
General contractor: Rich Kramer Construction Inc.
Architect: Buxton Kubik Dodd Design Collective
Engineers: Anderson Engineering Inc., civil; Miller Engineering PC, structural; Buxton Kubik Dodd Design Collective, mechanical, electrical and plumbing; and Palmerton & Parrish Inc., materials and testing
Size: 42,000 square feet
Estimated cost: $3.8 million
Funding source: Voter-approved bond
Estimated completion: Oct. 1
Project description: A building dedicated to health, physical education and recreation is under construction in the Strafford R-VI School District. Superintendent Mark Hedger said the building will be used throughout the day for curricular activities, not just for physical education, as well as band and elementary indoor recess. It also will have two additional classrooms that can be used to free up middle school and high school classroom space if needed, he said. “The building will be very beneficial for our school athletic programs to utilize after school as well,” Hedger said. “We are proud to be one of the first school districts in the area to provide a facility of this type.” Renderings show a building with a high, vaulted roof line and a large indoor playing surface with a retractable dividing wall. It is projected that students will be able to use the building this fall, shortly after the start of the year. Strafford voters approved a $7.5 million bond issue for district improvements in April 2019, and those funds have gone toward a variety of district improvements, including this building.