Old Redmond Schoolhouse will not be ready for students this fall

The scheduled preschool programs will remain at Dickinson Elementary for the next school year.

By Madison Miller • May 30, 2019 8:30 am

The Old Redmond Schoolhouse will not be opening in time for the 2019-20 school year.

As part of the 2016 Lake Washington School District (LWSD) bond, the schoolhouse is being redesigned as an Early Learning Center with the capacity for 10 classrooms.

The schoolhouse, which opened in 1922, is located on the Redmond Elementary School campus. The building, which previously served as an elementary school, has been leased to the city of Redmond since 1997 and is used as a community center.

The Long-Term Facilities Task Force recommended the district reacquire the school and make renovations so that it can be used for preschool classrooms. The building can’t be used for K-12 classrooms, as the district previously received state funding to replace the building when the new Redmond Elementary project was completed.

After transitioning the building back from the city of Redmond, work began in the fall of 2018 on the interior remodel.

“One of the challenges when remodeling an older, historic building is the potential to uncover additional work that needs to be done once you begin to remove walls and ceilings,” LWSD director of communications and engagement Shannon Parthemer said.

According to the district, the contractor for the project, Lydig Construction, let the district know in early spring that it believed additional maintenance was required on the building exterior including rooftops, exterior brick and mortar, and window casings to ensure the building was secure from moisture.

“Our capital projects team obtained outside third-party analysis to confirm the necessary work to be done and the timeline needed to complete the work,” Parthemer said. “Due to the additional time required to complete the work, we have determined that we need to postpone the opening of Old Redmond Schoolhouse until fall 2020.”

According to Parthemer, the preschool programs that were scheduled to move to the schoolhouse will remain at Dickinson Elementary School for the 2019-20 school year and that there will be no issues regarding the programming.

“Impacted staff and families were notified the week of May 13,” she said.

To keep updated on the progress of LWSD building updates, visit the district website.