Building History

Sunrise Elementary School
2323 39th Avenue Southeast
Puyallup, WA 98374

The original Sunrise Elementary School opened in 1973 and was located on South Hill, east of Meridian Street South and just north of 39th Avenue Southeast. In 1977, a separate building addition was made, including the construction of a play shed. The education specifications for the permanent buildings were designed to have a total of 18 general-use classrooms, two (2) kindergarten rooms, two (2) special education classrooms and a number of smaller specialty instructional spaces.

In 2012, the building received a Building Assessment Score of 63, compared to a districtwide rating average of 76.4. The Sunrise Elementary replacement school was a $30 million 2015 bond package project to increase the building capacity to 730 students. This 82,000+ sq. ft. replacement school consists of 30 classrooms and 15 project rooms as well as two (2) special education classrooms, two (2) music rooms, a library, a gymnasium/commons/lunchroom area, administration spaces, improved play areas, parent drop-off and parking. It was constructed to the west of the original school. The new school, designed by Studio Meng Strazzara of Seattle, Washington, and constructed by Forma Construction Co. of Olympia, Washington, was built according to Washington State's green building standard for high performance buildings. This environmentally friendly design includes energy efficiency, daylighting, water conservation, stormwater treatment and sustainable materials.

The school opened to students in September 2019 and will become eligible for state matching funds for modernization or new construction in lieu of modernization in the year 2049.