Historic Alameda High School Building Reopens To Students
ALAMEDA (KPIX) - After more than 40 years, Alameda High School will have students inside it once again Monday.
The school went through a $60 million transformation to become earthquake-safe and modern. The project was quite an undertaking -- it took two years to remove more than two million pounds of concrete, almost a million pounds of wood, and more than a million pounds of steel all to create the new and improved Alameda High School.
Welcoming the new, while honoring history, the Alameda Unified School District said, Alameda High School has returned to its grand status once again.
All three buildings on campus got major upgrades. There are 11 new science labs and 37 modernized classrooms, all earthquake-safe. What's been here for nearly a century, finally got a much-needed renovation thanks to the people of Alameda.
"California has a long way to go to fully and fairly fund public education," said Mia Bonta, Alameda Unified School Board President. "And while we work on statewide reform, the collective action of our local community like Alameda here, is critical in bettering the lives of our students. The reopening of the historic Alameda High School building is a testament to this community's love of our young people."
1978 was the last time students used the historic campus. Doomed for demolition, it was city leaders and activists who fought years to save the school, and fight for the money it would take to retrofit the old buildings.
A lot of this money came from Measure I, a bond voters passed back in 2014. The rest came from state grants, the district, and Prop 39. Almost 1,800 students get to go to this beautiful new school.