Pacific Beach kids celebrate brand-new school facilities

Pacific Beach Elementary Gets a Glow-Up 96 Years in the Making

After nearly a century of educating PB kids on Tourmaline Street, Pacific Beach Elementary just got the upgrade it deserved. San Diego Unified celebrated the completion of a massive whole-site modernization on February 3, wrapping up two and a half years of construction that transformed the historic campus from top to bottom.

The school first opened its doors in 1930 with a single building. Over the decades it grew piecemeal, adding structures through the 1950s, replacing aging buildings in the 1970s, and eventually relying on portable classrooms to keep up with the neighborhood's growing population. Those portables are now gone for good.

In their place stands a brand-new transitional kindergarten and kindergarten building with modern classrooms and collaborative workspaces that open onto a new play structure with shade shelters. Every existing classroom on campus was renovated. The multipurpose room, student services facility, school kitchen, and all restrooms received upgrades. A secure main campus entryway was also added, a feature PB parents are undoubtedly grateful for.

The project was funded through three community-approved bond measures: Propositions S and Z and Measure YY.

There is more coming. An expanded joint-use field along Tourmaline Street is set to open this spring with a walking track, basketball court, drinking fountain, trees, and a public access gate. Through the Play All Day partnership with the City of San Diego, the field will be open to the community after school hours and during breaks.

Mission Bay High cheerleaders joined students and staff for the ribbon-cutting celebration, and nearby Bird Rock Elementary is next in line with its own $25 million modernization slated to begin this summer.

Sources: KPBS | Times of San Diego | FOX 5 | San Diego Unified