BUTLERTWP— A $2.7 million expansion at Northwest Elementary School in the Butler School District opened this morning.

The gymnasium, which includes a stage and room for food service, opened after five months of construction.

The building will provide space for lunch, gym class, music class and school assemblies. This is the first time the school will have a raised stage, which can be closed off from the gym by a moving wall.

The old gym will be renovated to include a new computer lab and extra classrooms.

The project was part of the school district's plan in 2007 to make capital improvements with money left over from the renovation of the junior high school.