Greenwich's new $112 million Central Middle School opened its doors Monday, Aug. 24, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony that capped roughly four years of condemnation, earthquake damage and construction.
Students will walk into the 125,000-square-foot building for the first time Friday, Aug. 28, the first day of the school year.
"It really all started when that building over there was condemned. I will never forget that call," Superintendent Dr. Toni Jones said at the ceremony, according to Patch. "Sometimes, through adversity, that's how we really end up with something wonderful in our lives, and that's just how it works. Going through that was worth every single minute to end up with this new school."
The two-story school, built just north of the old 1958 building, is the largest capital project in Greenwich history. Construction began in December 2024 after the original structure was briefly condemned in 2022 over structural deficiencies and rattled again by an April 2024 earthquake centered in New Jersey.
What's inside
The first floor holds a secure entryway vestibule, an auditorium that will double as a community meeting space for the RTM and Board of Education, a gymnasium, a cafeteria sized for grade-level lunches, elective spaces and a media center repositioned to the building's center after being pushed to the side during a 2000 addition.
Upstairs, core academic classrooms are organized into grade-level "neighborhoods," with sixth graders nearest the gym and cafeteria. Two outdoor interior courtyards, built into the hillside, bring natural light into the back of the building. Boulders in the courtyards were reused from site excavation, and outdoor benches were made from trees removed from the site.
The campus also features a new extended driveway, a separate bus loop and new parking areas.
What's left to finish
Building Committee Chair Joe Rossetti told the crowd that four to five months of work remain: a permanent fire pumphouse, new athletic fields, hardscaping, landscaping and demolition of the old building, which was actively being torn down during the ceremony.
"Based upon our current expectation and understanding, we are hopeful we will deliver the project within the original $112 million appropriation," Rossetti said.
Rossetti said the project is expected to realize roughly $20 million in state reimbursements after Greenwich's House delegation secured a 20% reimbursement rate from Hartford in 2024, a percentage that exceeded initial expectations, according to Greenwich Free Press. Principal Tom Healy separately cited a $22 million reimbursement figure; the exact amount has not been reconciled publicly.
First Selectman Fred Camillo, Healy and Board of Education member Bob Chaney also spoke. Healy said faculty, staff and students all played a role in the building's design. State Reps. Steve Meskers and Hector Arzeno and former State Rep. Rachel Khanna attended.
Additional public tours will be announced in coming weeks, according to Healy.
