Fort Scott Middle School Principal Brian Weilert spoke to the Fort Scott Chamber of Commerce Weekly Coffee social Thursday at the school.

An important purpose of the building is safety during tornados.

“We can fit 650 people in this space,” Weilert said. “We can get the student body in here in four minutes.”

The building was constructed of concrete with minimal windows for student safety.

But the school uses what is referred to as “flex space”, for other purposes, Weilert said. “There is a community space, an art gallery, and breakout rooms.”

The brightly painted and colorfully decorated large building can be divided easily for different purposes. It is located on the south side of the school

“This space encourages creativity and it’s good to get out of class once in a while, to change environments,” Weilert said.

The newly constructed space was added to the school in 2017 as part of a district-wide building improvement project.

Pictured below are members of the community who congregated in small groups before the announcement segment of the Fort Scott Chamber of Commerce Weekly Coffee.

During the coffee event, members can tell about upcoming community events or organizations for a $1 donation, which goes to fund the town trolley car.

At the conclusion of the weekly coffee, the host organization/business/school/church gets a platform to tell about the events or projects that are currently happening.