Murray Middle School has broken ground on a $33 million rebuilding phase that will add permanent learning and performing arts spaces after a tornado spawned by Hurricane Milton damaged three main buildings and forced students into portable classrooms. School officials expect gym renovations to be completed by August 2027 and the new buildings to be finished by December 2027.
Students and staff gathered for the groundbreaking as the school moves into the second phase of its campus rebuilding project. The work includes a performing arts wing with band and choir rooms, new learning spaces and gym renovations. Murray Middle School Principal Tiffany Roth said students will also have a new media center, an art room and an agriculture room.
Martin County Superintendent Michael Maine said campus improvements were planned before Hurricane Milton, but the storm damage added urgency. About $33 million has been approved for the second phase, according to school officials. “When Hurricane Milton came through and spawned the tornado, it took down three of our main buildings that we rely on every single day,” Maine said. “We couldn't have our students displaced in portables any longer than we needed to.”
Choir was among the programs forced out of permanent space by the storm. Dr. Anita Caswell, Murray Middle School's choir and drama director, said the damage destroyed decades of program materials, including costumes and props. “It was 60 years of drama props,” Caswell said. “Our dresses were in that, the boys' vest that we used to sing in, and just to see it all mangled and stuck up on the wall, it just hurt.”
Caswell said students continued singing in a portable classroom and earned straight superior ratings that year. Murray Middle student Nicholas Lowe said the move required him to adjust to a different learning environment. Roth said she hopes students take pride in being Murray Lions and enjoy the new buildings when they are finished.