U-46 breaks ground on new Elgin elementary school

Elgin Area School District U-46 held a groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday to mark the start of construction on a new elementary school on Elgin’s northeast side.

The yet-to-be-named building will be the first elementary school U-46 has built in Elgin in more than 20 years, according to the district’s Facebook page. It is going up on the former David C. Cook property at 850 N. Grove Ave., which the district purchased from the company in 2024 for $2.4 million.

With contracts approved in May, construction, contingency, general conditions, fees and insurance will cost nearly $47.6 million, according to U-46 documents. Including furniture, permits and professional services, the total estimated price tag is about $57.2 million.

The school will include flexible instructional and collaboration spaces, abundant natural light, a two-story library, outdoor learning areas, and preschool classrooms, according to the release.

“What a privilege it is to be able to design and build a school from the ground up with today’s learners in mind,” Superintendent Suzanne Johnson said in the release.

Voters approved a $179 million referendum in 2023 that is serving as the chief funding mechanism for many Unite U-46 construction projects. The elementary school is expected to take two years to build and should be ready for use in the 2028-29 school year.

Mike Danahey is a freelance reporter for The (Elgin) Courier-News.