New Riverside School Project Gets Green Light
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MOUNDSVILLE -- Marshall County Board of Education members on Tuesday approved hiring a contractor to construct the new Riverside Elementary School in McMechen.
The board unanimously approved hiring Waller Corp. of Washington, Pa., which submitted the lowest bid of $29,669,800.
Two other companies also submitted bids: Colaianni Construction of St. Clairsville at $32,990,000 and Grae-Con Construction of Steubenville at $33,448,000.
Board members expressed their excitement about getting the project started. The work is expected to take about 18 months to two years to complete. It will be situated on a nearly flat parcel of land above the flood plain that is about 7 acres in size in McMechen.
The school, which will be home to the Riverside Royals, will sport the colors royal blue and gold. The official mascot will be a lion cub.
The school will feature a high school-sized gymnasium that includes a stage. The gym can also be used by the community as an emergency storm shelter, as it will have backup electrical power. There also will be preschool rooms and a preschool playground. Plans also include aftercare at the school.
Marshall County Schools received $9,213,555 in West Virginia School Building Authority funding for the new school, which will cover about 70% of the overall cost. The remainder will be covered by tax levy funds earmarked for the project. The original school was built in the 1970s, with the gym added in the 1950s.
Back in 2021, the district purchased the 7 acres located in the former McMechen Industrial Park for the new school. The property contained former baseball fields located at Lincoln and Fourth streets in McMechen. The land was purchased from the Chaplin Development Co. for $1.2 million.