Cross Keys High School in DeKalb County is getting a major renovation that’s been a long time coming.
At the Thursday groundbreaking ceremony for the $148 million project, Superintendent Devon Horton called the upgrades “long overdue.”
“Here is an example in which we are getting a wrong right,” he said. “It’s been decades in the making to make sure that this school is one of the best, and our students can receive everything that they need.”
The school — which serves about 1,600 students from Atlanta, Brookhaven, Chamblee and Doraville — will remain open during construction. The original building dates back to the 1950s.
Discussions about the renovations began before 2016, when the school was added to the list of projects to be completed with funds from the voter-approved Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax. But disagreements over which projects to prioritize and how to approach the needed updates at the campus pushed the project back for almost 10 years, Horton said. In 2022, students rallied at the school board to make sure the project wasn’t postponed again. The school board gave the project the final green light in March.
Credit: Cassidy Alexander
Credit: Cassidy Alexander
People at the school wondered whether the project would actually get started this time, said Ayvonne Reese, a teacher at the school and a member of the school’s Parent Teacher Association. When construction got started, it was a relief.
“I feel our students deserve this,” she said. “I feel like it’s going to boost the esteem of the school, boost the esteem of the students and help them take more pride in the school.”
The project includes two brand new buildings, which will encompass a new front office, media center, cafeteria, classrooms and performing arts center. It also includes upgrading existing facilities, including the gymnasium and bathrooms, reroofing the existing buildings, updating HVAC systems and a new sports complex. The entire project is expected to be finished in 2028.
The $148 million price tag on the project makes it one of the district’s largest, but still not the priciest. DeKalb is planning to spend around $235 million on the construction of a new Sequoyah Middle and Sequoyah High in Doraville. And there’s still debate about whether to renovate Druid Hills High or move to a new location. Building a new school somewhere else could cost an estimated $200 million.
The school got a new mascot last year, and is now home to the Phoenix. Interim Principal Roberta Gibson said the symbol of renewal is appropriate for the changes to come at the school.
“We’re not just breaking ground,” she said. “We are reimagining our future.”
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