Modernizing Glacier Middle School in Buckley

Submitted by SCJ Alliance

At Glacier Middle School in Buckley, Wash., class let out last week. The charming school in the shadow of Mount Rainier may be sent to the back of the kids’ minds, but it’s sitting right at the forefront for engineers at SCJ.

White River School District is planning a 55,000-square-foot addition at the school that will replace several buildings and portables, and SCJ is providing civil engineering design services for the project on the 30-acre campus.

Glacier Middle School in Buckley
SCJ is providing civil engineering design services for the project on the 30-acre campus. Photo courtesy: SCJ Alliance

“Glacier Middle School is on the site of the old high school and has been pieced together over the years,” explained Ross Jarvis, senior project manager at SCJ. “It has a maze of utilities and will be almost completely demolished.”

SCJ work includes water main design, sanitary sewer service lines, and a decorative stormwater feature that will provide stormwater quality and quantity improvements.

“We are designing the improvements into the learning environment,” Ross said. “Imagine a science class visiting a pond to measure environmental factors, for example.”

SCJ is also designing a new bus loop, additional parking lots, and parent parking and drop-off areas.

Glacier Middle School
White River School District is planning a 55,000-square-foot addition at Glacier Middle School in Buckley. Photo courtesy: SCJ Alliance

Ross continued, “We look forward to centralizing the school and bringing it all together in a way that makes sense for the facilities and utilities, but also for families and staff.”

Construction on the 55-year-old facility begins next summer.