Ground broken on Agua Fria transit facility

Agua Fria Union High School District broke ground in March on its new transportation and warehouse center which will serve the growing district.

The 20,000 square foot facility, which will be located at Thomas Road and Cotton Lane in Goodyear is expected to be completed in around 10 months. Ground was officially broken on the project March 17.

The district of nearly 8,500 students has “simply outgrown the current facility,” Superintendent Mark Yslas said at a March 16 school board meeting.

District spokesperson Megan Griego told Independent Newsmedia that the growth over the last decade has caused the district to need more bus routes–which means more buses.

“Our fleet of buses has really…outgrown our space,” Griego said, adding that the new transportation facility will accommodate not only the district’s current fleet of school buses, but it's future needs as the Southwest Valley continues to grow.

The new facility is part of a $55 million voter-approved bond passed in 2019 that will pay for a number of improvements for the district and for individual campuses.

The school board voted unanimously to purchase the land which will eventually house the facility at a Jan. 2021 meeting. That deal was finalized in November 2022.