Building for the future: Ground broken on new high school in Saratoga Springs
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- Local representatives participate in the ceremonial groundbreaking at the location that will eventually become a new high school in Saratoga Springs on Friday, June 20, 2025.
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- This photo taken Friday, June 20, 2025, shows rendering shows a tentative view of the future high school in Saratoga Springs.
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- Julie King, Alpine School District board president, addresses the crowd as part of the ceremonial groundbreaking at the location that will eventually become a new high school in Saratoga Springs on Friday, June 20, 2025.
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- Local representatives participate in the ceremonial groundbreaking at the location that will eventually become a new high school in Saratoga Springs on Friday, June 20, 2025.
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- Julie King, Alpine School District board president, addresses the crowd as part of the ceremonial groundbreaking at the location that will eventually become a new high school in Saratoga Springs on Friday, June 20, 2025.
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- Shane Farnsworth, Alpine School District superintendent, addresses the crowd as part of the ceremonial groundbreaking at the location that will eventually become a new high school in Saratoga Springs on Friday, June 20, 2025.
The Alpine School District is celebrating a new high school that will in a few short years serve two northwest Utah County cities that are exceeding projected population growth.
On Friday, school district officials, community leaders, and members of the public gathered to break ground for the new facility in Saratoga Springs.
The new high school is set to open just ahead of the 2028-29 school year, one year after the emerging and tentatively named Lake Mountain School District takes effect.
“We’re at a great opportunity, a once in a lifetime chance to form a new school district and to have a new high school being raised up at the same time,” outgoing Alpine School District Superintendent Shane Farnsworth said during the ceremony.
Alpine School District Board of Education President Julie King said the new high school symbolizes the community’s faith in the future and a testament to their collective action.
“One of the things I often say is that the government is a group project,” she said. “And this high school is a perfect example of that truth — like an orchestra, where every instrument contributes to a greater whole.”
The Alpine School District has faced years of challenges in moving the needle forward to build a new high school in the northwest part of the county.
In March 2024, the board of education considered issuing a $175 million bond for the construction of a new high school in Saratoga Springs but ultimately decided to hold off as the three-way split of the district was on the table.
One year later, during the 2025 Utah legislative session, the passage of Senate Bill 188, titled “School District Modifications,” played a vital role in paving the way for the plan to finally come to fruition.
In April, the board greenlit a $238 million revenue bond to construct the new high school in Saratoga Springs as well as a new elementary school in Eagle Mountain.
King recognized the commitment of state lawmakers, local mayors, city council members and families across Utah Valley who understood the needs of the growing communities and values education for future generations.
“While others saw obstacles, they saw opportunities,” she said.
Rep. Stephanie Gricius, R-Eagle Mountain — who was instrumental in working with the bill’s sponsor Sen. Keith Grover, R-Provo, to get S.B. 188 pushed forward — said the groundbreaking marks a significant milestone in the efforts to improve education for local students.
“It’s so exciting for us to have this opportunity to get this school going for students, we’re years behind on making it happen,” she told the Daily Herald. “So to actually have today be the day is a really big deal for our growing community.”
Saratoga Springs’ population, which sits just under 60,000 people, is anticipated to nearly double in the next 10 years, according to the city’s website.
Eagle Mountain’s current population is at roughly 70,000 residents, and is also expected to continue experiencing burgeoning growth.
Currently, students from both cities attend either Westlake or Cedar Valley High Schools. Each of the respective schools are anticipated to serve more than 3,000 students in the upcoming 2025-26 school year.
Residents and parents have raised concern for several years citing classroom overcrowding and its subsequent impacts on learning.
Emily Pullum, a Lehi resident and mom of three children, will have a front-row seat to the construction of the new high school.
Their family is currently building a new home directly across the street from where the facility is being built.
Even once the new school is built and operational, it’ll be several years before any of Pullum’s children are students there, but she is excited to watch it all come together.
“It’s thrilling, and I have really enjoyed communicating with members of the planning commission about some of these details,” Pullum said.
As a soon-to-be resident of Saratoga Springs, she said it’s encouraging to see such emphasis being placed on the rising generation of children.
“Saratoga Springs has the youngest median age of any city in Utah, it’s like something like 40% of Saratoga Springs citizens are under 18, so if we’re not serving them with good public education and the room to grow, we are majorly missing out on a big opportunity,” she told the Daily Herald. “And this is nestled right here in the heart of where things are really growing.”
The new high school will be located near the intersection of Mountain View Corridor and Ensign Drive, just southwest of the Saratoga Springs Utah Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
With the ceremonial shovels lifted and dirt turned, Saratoga Springs Mayor Jim Miller called Friday’s groundbreaking a positive step for providing students with the attention and classroom space they need.
“There’s a lot of kids in the community that really are looking forward to the school being here — (from) both Saratoga Springs and Eagle Mountain,” he said.
The Alpine School District said the new high school is anticipated to be one of the largest in the state.
King said the school will be named by newly elected board members of the emerging west district, who will take office after the November general election.
