A number of Buffalo Public Schools Officials spent the night updating members of the City Honors community concerning the future reconstruction of the building as part of the Phase III Joint Schools Construction Project, as well as the school’s temporary “swing school” home for two years at School #8.
This is an important evening. Your child’s next two years are going to be exciting years, filled with learning, and the BPS will ensure they are special years for those two classes. This project is remarkable. We wanted to stay at this site. And we knew it would have to be part of the Phase III project,” said City Honors Principal Dr. William Kresse.
Some of the highlights of the estimated $40 million reconstruction of City Honors School include a brand new gym, new swimming pool, new science labs, and a new library that is four times the size of the existing library at the school.
Plans are in place to build an eight-lane “All High Swimming Pool” similar to the Robert E. Rich All High Stadium adjacent to Bennett High School and the new All High Basketball court at Hutch Tech High School. The new gymnasium will be able to hold as many as 800 spectators, have four locker rooms, and a 1,000 square foot workout room.
“The gym and pool will be separate facilities with a central lobby connecting them to the school,” said LPCiminelli Project Manager Conrad Wesolek
A number of Buffalo Public School officials in departments ranging from transportation to security spent the night talking to parents, answering any and all questions concerning Phase III reconstruction plans. After a number of presentations in the school auditorium, officials broke off into smaller rooms to members of the community could ask one-to-one questions.
“We’re tremendously excited. And we’re committed to having this school stay at this site. For the next 100 years, it will ensure our location here at Fosdick Masten. Everything historical in nature will stay in place with the modern amenities of a modern school,” added Dr. Kresse.
As for recent news pertaining to the discovery of human remains at the site of City Honors School, engineers with LPCiminelli just submitted an exhumation and relocation plan to “SHIPO:” the New York State Historic Preservation Office. The tentative plan is to exhume all remains and place them at Forest Lawn Cemetery.
“We are going to wait for their feedback and we anticipate exhumation work to start taking place in March,” added Wesolek.
