Despite the gloomy weather, smiles were all around as the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Langston Road Elementary School was held Wednesday morning.
Perry Mayor Jimmy Faircloth, County Commissioner Tommy Stalnaker and Houston County Board of Education members were among the familiar faces gathered around the future location of the school. The community looked in the distance towards the spot where the complete school will stand come Aug. 2014.
“Langston Road Elementary School will have 47 classrooms and a total of 92,668 square feet. There will also be a gym and a media center,” shared school superintendent Robin Hines. “The school will have the capacity to serve 775 Pre-K through fifth grade students.”
Hines recognized Elgin Mayfield, the future principal of Langston Road Elementary.
“I am so proud to work for a school system that saw a need for students in Perry and is providing a state of the art facility to fulfill that need,” said Mayfield. “I am excited to be a part of it.”
Three members of the Langston family, for whom the road and the school were named, were present for the groundbreaking. James, Jerry and his wife Barbara Langston were in attendance.
“The school was named after my husband’s parents, W.C. and Mary Langston. They were real proponents of education and pushed it with their four children,” said Barbara Langston. “I know they would have been thrilled about the school being named after them if they were still with us today.”
Hines also recognized members of the community who played a major role in the process of building this school.
“I want to thank the board for the vision. This is going to be a beautiful facility and will generate pride,” said Hines. “The kids deserve this and we look forward to opening the doors in August 2014.”
The 2012-2017 Education-Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax is funding the project. Langston Road Elementary School sits on 20 acres and is costing $14.2 million to build.
Robertson, Loia and Roof (RLR) Architects and Engineering designed the school and the construction manager is Parrish Construction Group. Citizens Community publicized the ESPLOST.
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