LANSING, Ill. (May 13, 2023) – The Lansing Area Chamber of Commerce held its luncheon meeting on May 10 in District 158’s newly-renovated Lester Crawl Primary Center.
Lester Crawl Primary Center
The building project is a renovation and expansion of the existing Lester Crawl building which has been around since the 1950s. District 158 broke ground on the estimated $20 million expansion and renovation project in 2021.
Attendees were part of the first pledge of allegiance in the space, said District 158 Superintendent Dr. Nathan Schilling.
Currently, the school enrolls a little over 100 students. When the building project is complete, the plan is to increase the number to over 200. Next school year, school operations will move to the new space while the old space is renovated.
The building started construction after the back parking lot of the existing Lester Crawl building was removed, and the maintenance building was relocated to a quarter-acre of land donated by District 215 near TF South High School.
New building
The crown jewel of the new addition is an indoor playground, a colorful multi-use space with bright colors, shapes, and natural light. Near the ceilings are photos and logos from each of District 158’s schools, which was intentional because many students will eventually matriculate to those schools.
According to Lester Crawl Principal Dr. Kim Morley, the space is a large gross motor area, which is designed for full body movement. Though fully indoors and temperature-controlled, the playground has an outdoor feel due to natural light that comes through windows and a skylight roof, similar to the one found at the Lansing Public Library.
In contrast to the bright indoor playground, classrooms are muted in color to help facilitate learning and focus for all students.
Safety is another feature that has been improved with the renovations. Guests have to identify themselves before entering the building and provide identification.
“Safety is a big part of our building…we want to make sure our children are safe,” said Morley.
In addition to the check-in process, there will be a half-circle drive that goes through a one-way street to reduce the amount of traffic. A Blue-Light alert system was put in place to alert the police, along with a system that alerts the paramedics.
Principal Architect and owner of JMA Architects, Jim Maciejewski, shared highlights of the space and some of the challenges of constructing it.
Maciejewski, who has worked with District 158 for the past 25 years, stated some of the outward challenges to the project have been getting the necessary materials in a timely manner, the cost of the materials, and having the appropriate amount of staff during the pandemic.
The completion of the unique indoor playground, as well as other parts of the school, took innovation, collaboration, and adjustments.
“Listen to what those impacts are and [don’t] have the mindset that the way we’ve always done business is the way we have to continue,” said Maciejewski.
The school will continue to have resources to serve students, such as social work services, speech services, and occupational therapy services.
“The goal is to get more students in, get them educated and get them interventions earlier so they can be more successful throughout their following nine years with us and their four years at TF South,” Schilling said.
Once the building is complete, there will be a ribbon cutting with the students.
Lester Crawl Primary Center is located at 18300 Greenbay Avenue in Lansing.
JMA Architects
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