Interior shot of Emporia Middle School renovated by McCownGordon.

Emporia Middle School Renovation and Addition

Project Case Study
Originally built in 1992, the Emporia Middle School housed only seventh and eighth graders. As a result of the sixth graders moving into the building in 2011, the middle school ultimately was facing capacity issues. As part of their Building For the Future bond initiative, USD 253 decided to expand the middle school by 45,000 square feet while renovating parts of the existing building.

Client

Emporia Public Schools USD 253

Processes

Building Information Modeling
Safety
Preconstruction
Collaborative Delivery

City

Emporia, KS

Enhancements to the middle school included the 10,000 square feet gymnasium addition that also serves as a high winds shelter and a new science wing featuring six new classrooms and lab space.

Emporia Middle School gymnasium renovated by McCownGordon Construction.
Science labs at Emporia Middle School constructed by McCownGordon Construction.
Exterior shot of Emporia Middle School renovated by McCownGordon Construction.
The front addition of the building brought the office and administration areas to the front, providing a more secure entrance. A life skills suite for special education was created in the former office space.
Interior shot of Emporia Middle School constructed by McCownGordon Construction.

During the design phase, a $300,000 issue was encountered that involved the building’s firewalls. With our preconstruction efforts, we found value engineering options to offset the entire amount with no charge to the district. Our team completed this project ahead of schedule and returned significant savings to the district to reinvest in their project.