Architects unveil plans for Casper's new Kelly Walsh high school

A reconstructed Kelly Walsh High School in 2017 will feature open spaces and enhanced safety, and will accommodate a planned curriculum overhaul in the Natrona County School District.

Architects from RB+B Architects Inc. during a public meeting Tuesday night unveiled the preliminary design, which incorporates four academies based on career fields.

Students will attend school on campus throughout construction of the new school, which will stand along 12th Street to the south of the existing building. Parking lots and landscaping will cover much of where the current KW building stands.

The main entrance will look north, an about-face that affords a view down the slope for approaching students, staff members and visitors. Once the first bell rings, inner doors will lock to force traffic through main office areas, a safety feature of modern schools, architects said.

In the first phase, from May until the summer of 2015, crews will build three quarters of the new school while students continue classes in the old building. The exception will be theater classes because the auditorium will be demolished this summer.

Students will move into the new building for the second phase, to take place from summer 2015 until summer 2016. The old building then will be demolished, except possibly the library and gymnasium, where theater classes may take place that school year. The shop areas also will remain standing during the second phase, presenters said.

Demolition of the old building and remaining site work would take place from summer 2016 to summer 2017.

I dont know of anyone who isnt excited about having the opportunity to teach and learn in a new place, KWHS Principal Brad Diller said after the meeting. Besides educational advantages in the new school, Diller said hes also looking forward to more open, bright spaces.

Those include a balcony overlooking a spacious commons area. A highlight of the plans is a grand stairway where students can attend presentations and eat lunch.

It cascades down the hillside to that lower gymnasium level, said Matt Arabasz, an RB+B project manager. He added that its designed to not feel like going into a basement.

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Architects unveil plans for Casper's new Kelly Walsh high school