Ground breaks on new Prattville Early Learning Center
PRATTVILLE − Prattville’s newest school will pay homage to the city’s past.
Ground was broken this week for the Prattville Early Learning Center, which will serve as a kindergarten and pre-K school. The 87,000-square-foot school is behind Daniel Pratt Elementary School, in the booming area of east Prattville. The Prattville Kindergarten School, which it will replace, is in downtown and was built in 1920.
The new school will be state-of-the-art as far as communications and internet service goes, but will look familiar to the generations that went before in the kindergarten school, which also served as Autauga County High School in a previous life.
The new school will have a cupola and will be of similar appearance to the kindergarten school.
“We are looking to our past and building to our future,” said Superintendent Tim Tidmore. “We will have several architectural elements that share with the gin shop downtown. So, we are honoring our history.”
The new school will have a storm shelter, able to handle the entire enrollment and staff, a gym, 30 classrooms and plenty of room to grow.
“We are building for the future,” Tidmore said.
The cost is unknown, bids will be opened Thursday, but the estimated cost comes in at about $25 million. The board of education is paying for the construction separately from a proposed 15-mill property tax increase for the Prattville attendance zones that will fund a massive capital improvement plan.
Residents will vote on the tax increase during the November General Election.
In a nice touch at the groundbreaking, several three-year-olds took part in shoveling the ceremonial dirt. Construction is expected to take about two years. The three-year-olds will grow to be the school’s first class.
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Jay Thompson, construction manager for the school system waxed nostalgic during his portion of the program. He recalled that his great grandparents, grandparents and parents attended the old school when it was Autauga County High School.
“By the time it came around to me, there was a lottery for students to attend because there wasn’t enough space for all the students,” he said. “I remember waiting, hoping my name didn’t get picked. It did.
“And now we’re building a new school building.”
Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Marty Roney at mroney@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: New Prattville Kindergarten School on the way
