Nearly three years after a fire at Central Union Preschool the long awaited rebuilding process has begun.
4 year-old Brennan Suehiro is among close to 200 students who attend Central Union Preschool and Kindergarten.
He’s looking forward to construction and expansion at his school after a fire destroyed a third of the campus which included one of the oldest buildings on property, three classrooms, administrative offices and the teacher’s lounge nearly three years ago.
"The emotional loss was great, the building we could rebuild and we knew we were going to but it took a while for us to heal," said Central Union Preschool Director Marie Hook.
Closed for nine days after the blaze investigators determined the fire had been intentionally set. Luckily the school was assisted by Central Union Church which offered facilities.
The groundbreaking on Wednesday marks the process toward rebuilding the entire school.
"We gonna build their replacement classrooms first, move the kids and teachers in and then demolish and keep proceeding like that. The school will not shut down," said Carl Racuya of the Preschool Committee and Ministry.
The campus, which will be built in four phases at a cost of up to $12 million, will include 10 cottage-style classrooms in a New England town square model, feature a barn and be the first preschool in the state to be LEED silver certified.
No one has been arrested in connection with the arson case. School officials say since the blaze in 2008 a lot has been lost but a new chapter has begun.
"It was devastating it was heartbreaking but so many people rose to the occasion and worked together and we just feel so blessed that we have come to this point," Hook says.
See the original article at: KHON2 Local News
