Construction Begins at Madison Simis Elementary School in North Central Phoenix

PHOENIX - Sept. 24, 2015 - PRLog -- PHOENIX (Sept. 24, 2015) – McCarthy Building Companies and Madison School District #38 are celebrating the start of construction of the new $16 million, 72,000-square-foot Madison Simis Elementary School and administrative building in north central Phoenix. Elected officials including Councilman Sal DiCiccio, Representative Dr. Eric Meyer, Representative Ken Clark and Representative Kate Brophy McGee will join school officials, teachers, parents, students and the construction team on Sept. 30 for the ceremonial groundbreaking of the project, which was approved by voters in the 2014 bond election.

The construction project, which is scheduled to complete in July 2016, involves the demolition of all existing structures, with the exception of the cafeteria, and the replacement of the school buildings. The new buildings will provide approximately 40 new classrooms, including art, preschool and flex space.  In addition, the project includes construction of a new library and media center; learning gardens and outdoor teaching space; a gathering-area courtyard; a new ball field; and a new administrative building with front office, nurse’s office, conference rooms and administrative offices.

“The new buildings are so beautiful, and it has been a thrill for students and staff to be able to observe construction progress daily. We notice progress daily and have enjoyed working with the McCarthy construction team and the Orcutt Winslow architectural firm.  We are so fortunate to have the best of both worlds — an established, strong, supportive community and a lovely new school,” said Madison Simis Principal Joyce Flowers.

The new campus design includes extensive natural light in all classrooms. Efficiencies are also being incorporated into the new buildings with the goal of lowering water and energy usage, including all LED lighting, high-efficiency HVAC system and low-flow bathrooms. All classrooms will be audio-enhanced and feature multi-user interactive displays to improve sharing and collaboration in the classroom.

“We are pleased to be entering this exciting phase of construction, where the community will begin to see construction progress on this long-awaited school project,” said Justin Kelton, executive vice president of McCarthy Building Companies, Southwest division. “Our timeline is ambitious, delivering the fastest new school building of this size for our division. Thanks to our extensive pre-construction coordination systems and advanced scheduling techniques, we are ready to achieve this goal for the district and the community.”

WHAT:          Groundbreaking Ceremony for Madison          Simis Elementary School

WHEN:          8:15 – 8:45 a.m. Wed., Sept. 30, 2015

WHERE:          Ballfield area located at 7302 N. 10^th St.,       Phoenix, AZ 85020

Media are invited to attend for the photo op and interviews with school officials and construction team regarding the construction project. Project rendering is available upon request.

About Madison Simis/Madison School District:

Madison Simis Elementary serves children grades pre-kindergarten through four. In 2014, Madison Simis became authorized as an International Baccalaureate® (IB) World School in the Primary Years Programme®. As an IB World School, Simis is part of a global community of schools committed to developing knowledgeable, caring young people who will be ready to negotiate their futures successfully and make contributions resulting in a more harmonious and peaceful world.

Madison is an “A” labeled destination school district in the heart of Phoenix that is Internationally Accredited by AdvancED. Established in 1890, Madison honors its tradition of excellence as it looks forward to the future by implementing a variety of initiatives and programs for students to ensure Extraordinary Learning for All.

Madison's eight schools provide a program of public education from pre-kindergarten through grade eight, with an estimated current enrollment of approximately 6,000 students. Madison’s community spans a wide socio-economic range and reflects the ethnic diversity of the city as a whole. Neighborhoods in the area have been highlighted in Phoenix Home and Garden and Money magazines, with both publications listing the local public schools as one of the reasons they are so desirable. The Arizona Republic referred to Madison as, “…the best performing Elementary District in Phoenix...” For more information, visit madisonaz.org. Follow Madison on Twitter at twitter.com/MadisonAZ or on Facebook at facebook.com/MadisonAZ.

About McCarthy Building Companies:

McCarthy Building Companies (http://www.mccarthy.com), Inc. is a leading school construction firm and the nation’s 12th largest domestic general contractor (Engineering News-Record, May 2015). As a 100 percent employee-owned company, McCarthy is the largest American owned construction company in the United States. The McCarthy Southwest Division is based in Phoenix. McCarthy also has offices in Newport Beach, San Diego, Sacramento and San Francisco, Calif.; Las Vegas; Albuquerque; Dallas and Houston; St. Louis and Atlanta.