EVERETT — Lake Stevens residents saw design renderings of the new $70.7 million Glenwood Elementary for the first time Friday, with construction planned to start in June 2027.
The Lake Stevens School District posted the 3D renderings to its website after submitting ecological permitting paperwork to the state Department of Ecology Oct. 27, which was a big step in the process, said Robb Stanton, executive director of school planning and construction, in a Thursday interview.
“The ecological permit is really involved,” he said. “There’s an awful lot that we need to do to make sure that we’re protecting the environment, that we’re practicing safe construction practices, and that we’re getting permission from all of the agencies that have oversight for those things.”
Lake Stevens voters passed a capital improvement bond in February 2025 to fund the construction. The state is also providing $12.3 million for the project, the district’s website says.
Glenwood Elementary sits next to a protected wetland, which the district can’t build on, so the new building is limited to the existing school’s footprint, Stanton said.
“One of the biggest challenges is solving some of the site issues that we have with the existing school,” he said. “The way that we address that with our smaller sites is to build up.”
The new Glenwood Elementary building will be three stories. The Lake Stevens School District is building its first ever three-story school, which the district currently calls Elementary School No. 8, across the street from Stevens Creek Elementary. The district will select a formal name and mascot for the school in a few years.
“That gives us the ability to create more space for learning, for play, for parking, to drop off your student or pick them up,” Stanton said. “It just gives us more ability to do the things that are needed.”
Site designs include a bus loop, which the old school lacked, and a separate drop-off area. Renderings show a turf field and play area in front of the building.
Doing so puts the new building right up against the wetlands, “not only for views but for science and for nature activities,” Stanton said.
“The connection to the glen and to the environment has been very important for us and our staff,” said Gina Anderson, chief of innovation, compliance and school support operations, in the Thursday interview. “All of our classrooms will look out over the glen and we have an outdoor classroom that has access to the glen.”
The front play areas also make them more accessible to the public, Stanton said.
A secure perimeter fence will surround the entire campus, district spokesperson Jayme Taylor said during the interview. Electronic walking gates will allow public access after hours, she said.
The new building will feature 26 learning spaces that can accommodate more than 650 students, planning documents say.
Glenwood currently enrolls about 640 students and the district is growing by 50 to 100 students per year.
The capital bond is also funding Elementary School No. 8’s construction, which will serve about 750 students; a new specialized learning center for secondary students; a new Skyline Elementary, expected to open midwinter 2027; an expansion to Lake Stevens Middle School; and a Gymnasium at Hillcrest Elementary, along with some smaller projects.
“We’re planning to receive about $80 million from the state,” Stanton said. “So, the $314 million that the community has contributed will actually get us more than $400 million.”
Glenwood Elementary’s is planned to finish construction for the 2028-29 school year. Once the district completes Elementary School No. 8, Glenwood students will fill its halls from 2027-28, then return to their new school in 2028, Taylor said.
For the 2028-29 school year, the district will renovate Lake Stevens Middle School and those students will utilize Elementary School No. 8, she said.
“Then in the third year, we will have already gone through a re-boundering process, community process led by our board, and then we’ll know which students and staff are at Elementary School No. 8 and it’ll have a name and mascot and its branding,” Taylor said.
“It’s like a big Jenga,” Anderson said. “We’re moving students into different buildings, and then when they finish moving other sin, as a way to honor our community and to use our tax dollars wisely.”
Taylor Scott Richmond: 425-339-3046; taylor.richmond@heraldnet.com; Bluesky: @btayokay.bsky.social
