Reconstruction set to begin at Sowers Middle School in Huntington Beach

Navigating the honeycomb-shaped building at Sowers Middle School in Huntington Beach can get confusing.

Current Sowers principal Renee Johnson, in her third year, laughs when she talks about walking around the campus of the school that was built in 1973.

“Because of that honeycomb shape, everything opens up to everything else,” she explained. “Sometimes you’re just like, ‘Oh, I didn’t realize I was over there.’ There’s one room, honestly when I first started as assistant principal, I’m like, ‘Where are these kids coming from?’ I didn’t even know that room was there.”

That will all be changing in the coming months, as the Huntington Beach City School District campus undergoes a $71-million reconstruction project.

The district held a groundbreaking ceremony on the Sowers campus Tuesday afternoon, with remarks from Supt. Leisa Winston and Board of Trustees President Paul Morrow, among others.

The project will bring significant changes to the campus. The front office, currently located off Indianapolis Avenue, will be moved to the east part of the campus off Latern Lane.

Board president Paul Morrow and Sowers Principal Renee Johnson, from left, make comments during Tuesday’s ceremony.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

“It’s really designed, finally, to make sense for parents dropping off kids and [for] parking,” said Morrow, who served as Sowers principal for 15 years before moving on to Marina High. “And our classrooms are going to allow windows and air conditioning, all of the things that kids need to feel comfortable as they learn. It’s going to be an amazing time.”

Additionally, the Sowers campus will get a gymnasium, a STEM lab and feature exterior opening classrooms, natural lighting and large outdoor areas for gathering.

“I think the classrooms are really going to lend themselves to 21st century technology and learning,” Johnson said.

She added that currently, the Vikings’ athletic teams have to go to Dwyer, the district’s other middle school, to compete.

Attendees at Tuesday’s ceremony heard from another group that would benefit from the gymnasium space, as the Sowers choir performed a rendition of “Pure Imagination.”

“We have such a great music program and such great athletics,” Johnson said. “It’s just going to be nice to have a building that’s really going to showcase all of the kids’ abilities and skills.”

Johnson said the project is unique for her, as she was the principal at Perry Elementary before that campus was closed by the district in 2020. Now she has the opportunity to witness her current campus become revitalized.

Members of the Sowers Middle School choir perform “Pure Imagination” during Tuesday’s ceremony.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

The project, which has Studio W Architects as the architect and Construct 1 Corp. as the general contractor, will feature five AMS Gen 7 prefabricated buildings for 27 new classrooms overall. There will also be increased security, with perimeter fencing and a single point of energy.

The Sowers reconstruction will be funded largely by Measure Q funds (an estimated $43 million) and the sale of Gisler School ($23 million). Gisler was another middle school in the district before it closed in 1986.

Building is anticipated to be completed in late 2024.

“We are proud of the educational programs that Sowers currently provides to our students,” Winston said. “To best prepare our students for high school and beyond, the campus needs to be reimagined to continue the legacy of educational excellence into the future. We are very excited to get this project underway. When completed, our students will have a state-of-the-art campus that will make an incredible impact on the education and lives of our students, staff and community for generations to come.”

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