- Who: Martin County school officials, staff, and students at Murray Middle School
- What: Groundbreaking on a $33 million second phase of the campus rebuild
- Where: Murray Middle School, Stuart, Florida
Murray Middle School in Stuart has broken ground on a $33 million phase of its campus rebuild. The work follows a tornado spawned by Hurricane Milton that damaged three main buildings and pushed students and programs into portable classrooms, according to Martin County School District officials.
The district says improvements to the campus were already planned before the storm. The damage, officials said, added urgency to the project.
What the $33 Million Phase Will Build
School officials say the money has been approved for the second phase of the project. It covers new learning spaces, a performing arts wing and renovations to the school’s gym.
Principal Tiffany Roth described several of the planned additions. They include a new media center, an art room, and an agriculture room. The performing arts wing will house the band and choir rooms, two programs that lost permanent space after the storm.
The timeline provided by the district calls for the gym to be finished by August 2027. The new buildings are expected to be done by December 2027.
Portable Classrooms and Lost Program Materials
Superintendent Michael Maine said the three buildings destroyed by the tornado were ones the school relied on every day. He said the district did not want students displaced in portables longer than necessary.
The loss reached beyond classrooms. Dr. Anita Caswell, the school’s choir and drama director, said decades of drama props, costumes and choir attire were destroyed. Her singers moved into a portable classroom, and she said the choir still earned straight superior ratings that year.
Student Nicholas Lowe said the move to a different learning environment required adjusting, particularly for choir.
What Comes Next for Murray Lions
Construction now moves forward on the campus, with the gym the first project due for completion in August 2027. The new classroom and performing arts buildings follow in December 2027. Until then, students and staff will keep using temporary spaces while parts of the campus remain unavailable.
Roth said she hopes students will take pride in the finished campus as Murray Lions. The project is one of the longer-term recovery efforts tied to hurricane damage in Martin County.
