BONNERS FERRY — Over a month after a groundbreaking ceremony to announce the construction of a new Valley View Elementary School, work has continued behind the scenes to prepare the current building for demolition next summer. 

Built in 1948, Valley View has served generations of students who have come through its halls to learn and make friends. 

“We will be sending out notices that we will shut this campus down for the summer, except for the baseball field in the back,” Boundary County School District Superintendent Jan Bayer said.  

Bayer thanked everyone who came to the groundbreaking ceremony, which included Lieutenant Governor Scott Bedke and Idaho Superintendent Debbie Critchfield. 

“I was excited,” Bayer said. “The students were amazing; they were all clapping in unison. It was a great day for Boundary County.” 

Since the groundbreaking ceremony, most of the progress has taken place behind the scenes rather than on the building itself. 

“Right now, it’s a lot of behind-the-scenes paperwork going on. If you’ve been out back, the modules were completely removed over spring break,” Bayer said. “There’s also work behind the scenes on how they’re going to hook up sewer, water, electricity and natural gas.” 

“A lot of the work that you don’t see progress on has to be done before they can start building,” Bayer said. 

At the May 11 school board meeting, a representative of B.F. Builders, the general contractor on the project, said the estimated cost would come in about $1.5 million under projections. 

“It’s coming in at $1.5 million below projected cost, which we are super excited about,” Bayer said. “We're hoping that actually comes to fruition. We want to be really good stewards of taxpayer dollars. We’re hoping long term that further helps our community.” 

It will now be around $16.5 million dollars, according to Ivan Wedel with B.F. Builders. 

The Idaho Legislature awarded BCSD $13.2 million in 2025 to build a new facility with funding coming from House Bill 338, which allocated $50 million for rural school facility upgrades statewide. Bayer said she was concerned that funds like the one Valley View received may not be available for future school projects across the state. 

“That fund had $50 million in it. We received $13.2 million of it,” Bayer said. “They have not replenished that fund yet.” 

The school district has been mindful of the community surrounding Valley View, Bayer said. 

“Everything will be fenced off,” Bayer said. “Work won’t be going late into the evening. The building itself should be done by June of next year. The goal is to open on time for the 2027 school year.” 

Bayer said she is looking forward to creating a better space for students. 

“I think it’s just exciting to have functional classrooms where the water faucet will work in the classroom, so kids have a safe learning environment,” Bayer said. 

“When we look at the special education areas that we’ll be able to serve some of our highest-needs students, it’s exciting to know those rooms will be set up so we can really work on life skills,” Bayer said. “We can really have structured learning spaces for our students.”

Looking toward the distant future, Bayer said other projects will eventually be on the horizon. 

“The biggest project, but we’re talking probably 15 to 20 years, is we’ll have to look at our middle school,” Bayer said. “I don’t think I’ll be here when that happens.”