Coeur d'Alene School District Superintendent Matt Handelman, right and director of maintenance and school grounds Bryan Martin, left led a tour of the new Winton Elementary School, in Coeur d'Alene on Tuesday. The school was rebuilt from the ground up over the past year. It replaces what was the oldest and most inadequate school in Coeur d'Alene. This was a custom job, unlike many schools that seem more cookie-cutter design. Wnton will welcome back students this fall. (SR photo: Kathy Plonka)

The playground is in, the lockers are up and the maple flooring is down in the gymnasium. It even has that new-school smell. Winton Elementary School is cruising to the finish line – on budget, ahead of schedule and unlike any other school built in Coeur d’Alene. From the front entrance, with brick and wood shingles that echo the character of the old Winton, to the polished concrete floors to the Spokane River views from some of the 18 classrooms, the $8 million project stands apart from a series of major school renovations completed here in recent years. “I think it’s the best job we’ve ever had in the district’s history,” said Bryan Martin, director of maintenance and facilities for the school district. “So when you’re coming in (on target) moneywise and you get everything you want, and you get the project early so we can move in, you just can’t beat that”/Scott Maben, SR. More here.

Question: Did you go to elementary school in North Idaho? Which one?