December 14, 2012. A 20-year-old gunman named Adam Lanza invaded the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut and fatally shot 20 children, ages six and seven, and six adult staff members. Following that horrific event, the town of Newtown decided to build a new, 87,000-sf PreK-4 school, which required extreme sensitivity by the Building Team that worked hand and hand with the town on every aspect of the building’s planning, design, and construction.
On the recommendation of owner’s rep, STV|DPM, the school’s Public Building and Site Commission assembled the project team before planning began. The architects collaborated with more than 50 participants of the project’s programming committee. The Building Team also worked with teachers and parents to develop workshops to inform young children about the project’s design, engineering, and construction.
The Building Team went to great lengths to assuage a still-grieving community during the design and construction for this school. That included training sessions for subcontractors to reinforce the sensitive nature of this project. Robert Benson Photography.
To respect the community, the construction process closed off the site to gawkers, limited photography, and accommodated project tours for school staff members, families of survivors, and teachers. Construction manager Consigli hosted two subcontractor events to raise awareness among the trades about the project’s requirements.
The new school’s striking design emphasizes outdoor activities. Footbridges recall the geology of Newtown’s watercourses. The building’s largest central courtyard—overlooked by two small breakout spaces imagined as tree houses—is landscaped with two amphitheater-style classroom spaces for outdoor learning. The building’s light-filled main lobby includes a two-story wall of clear and colored glass and overhead corridor bridge, with nearby artwork evoking nature.
This finished product emphasizes outdoor activities and includes an overhead corridor bridge. Robert Benson Photography.
Building Team – Submitting firm, architect Svigals + Partners Owner Town of Newtown, Conn. Interior architect Lynn Brotman Interior Design Structural engineer Michael Horton Associates MEP BVH Integrated Services CM Consigli Constrution Owner’s representative STV|DPM
General Information – Size 87,160 sf Cost $39.8 million Construction time October 2014 to July 2016 Delivery method CM at risk
Related Stories
Building Team Awards | May 27, 2016
Big police academy trains thousands of New York's finest
The Police Training Academy in Queens, N.Y., consists of a 480,000-sf academic/administration building and a 240,000-sf physical training facility, linked by an aerial pedestrian bridge.
Building Team Awards | May 26, 2016
Cimpress office complex built during historically brutal Massachusetts winter
Lean construction techniques were used to build 275 Wyman Street during a winter that brought more than 100 inches of snow to suburban Boston.
Building Team Awards | May 25, 2016
New health center campus provides affordable care for thousands of Northern Californians
The 38,000-sf, two-level John & Susan Sobrato Campus in Palo Alto is expected to serve 25,000 patients a year by the end of the decade.
Building Team Awards | May 24, 2016
Los Angeles bus depot squeezes the most from a tight site
The Building Team for the MTA Division 13 Bus Operations and Maintenance Facility fit 12 acres’ worth of programming in a multi-level structure on a 4.8-acre site.
Building Team Awards | May 23, 2016
'Greenest ballpark' proves a winner for St. Paul Saints
Solar arrays, a public art courtyard, and a picnic-friendly “park within a park" make the 7,210-seat CHS Field the first ballpark to meet Minnesota sustainable building standards.
Building Team Awards | May 20, 2016
Pittsburgh's Tower at PNC Plaza raises the bar on high-rise greenness
The Building Team designed the 800,000-sf tower to use 50% less energy than a comparable building. A 1,200-sf mockup allowed the team to test for efficiency, functionality, and potential impact on the building’s occupants.
Building Team Awards | May 19, 2016
Chinatown library unites and serves two emerging Chicago neighborhoods
The 16,000-sf, pebble-shaped Chinatown Branch Library was built at the intersection of new and old Chinatown neighborhoods. The goal is for the building to unite the communities and serve as a catalyst for the developing area.
Building Team Awards | May 19, 2016
NYC subway station lights the way for 300,000 riders a day
Fulton Center, which handles 85% of the riders coming to Lower Manhattan, is like no other station in the city’s vast underground transit web—and that’s a good thing.
Building Team Awards | May 16, 2016
Upstate New York performing arts center revives once-toxic lakefront site
Early coordination, prefabrication, and judicious value engineering contributed to the accelerated completion of the Onondaga Lakeview Ampitheater, a Upstate New York design-build project.
Building Team Awards | May 16, 2016
12 building projects that represent the best in AEC team collaboration
A busy, light-filled Manhattan subway station and a pebble-shaped Chicago library are among the winners of the 19th annual Building Team Awards.
