Construction on the new Blackwater Community School, the Gila River Indian Community’s K-5 grade school located south of Phoenix, was completed in August 2021. The 7.43-acre campus was done by Rosendin, along with Gilbane Building Company and design partner Breckenridge Group. The $31 million replacement campus incorporates culturally significant artwork throughout the two-story classroom building, media center, multi-purpose building, and cafeteria. The community made a significant investment in special systems to provide students with the most modern and secure systems available. These systems included fire alarm, Cat 6 cabling/fiber backbone (for internet, etc.), access control/secured door systems, IP CCTV, security, IP overhead paging, and audiovisual. Rosendin’s team also worked on lighting, playground areas, basketball courts, sports fields, and reading patios. The campus also features an 83.16kW DC canopy-mounted PV system.
The school was originally built in 1939 and in 2018 received approval from the Bureau of Indian Affairs for funding a replacement school. The two-year-long campus build required an aggressive phasing schedule to implement construction while school was in session. Parts of the project were scheduled over winter and summer breaks to mitigate disruption to students.
