L.A. school opens after 23 years
By By Lenora Jane Estes and Sam Oches, Editorial Interns
More than two decades in the making, the Edward R. Roybal Learning Center finally opened on September 3 with more than 2,600 high school students attending classes on the 25-acre campus in downtown Los Angeles for the first time. The school's original construction was halted in 1999 after the discovery of underground methane gases, and again in 2002 after the discovery of a seismic fault line.
Design architect WWCOT, Santa Monica, Calif., took over the project in 2003, breathing new life into the conceptual plan. The scope of WWCOT's work totaled $132 million and encompassed approximately 100,000 sf of new construction, including a 500-seat classroom building, library, auditorium, music and drama classrooms, and food services; renovation of 72,800 sf of classrooms and 300,000 sf of gym and parking space in the existing buildings, which were converted into six 500-seat academies; demolition of two unfinished structures; implementation of an earthquake fault setback; and the construction of an adjacent, 10-acre community park.
Other members of the Building Team include structural engineer Brandow & Johnston Associates, Los Angeles; MEP engineer Donald F. Dickerson Associates, Van Nuys, Calif.; and acoustical engineer Martin Newsom & Associates, Santa Monica.