The 2,400-student district contracted BBS Architects, Landscape Architects and Engineers of Patchogue, N.Y., to provide architecture, interior design, mechanical, electrical and engineering services.
“The construction program will significantly improve the condition of all buildings occupied by students and faculty, renovate instructional spaces, promote energy efficiency, improve motorized traffic safety within school grounds, and rebuild athletic fields and tennis courts,” said BBS principal architect Roger Smith, AIA, LEED AP in an interview with the New York Real Estate Journal in March. “The district’s facilities have not received any major improvements since they were built in the 1960s and 1970s. The renovation program will bring these buildings to the 21st century’s standards of design, safety, codes, efficiency and educational facility planning.”
Projects will take place at four Shoreham schools, including one high school, one middle school and two elementary schools. Work is scheduled to begin this summer and will be completed incrementally over the next five years.
Many of the district’s structures are beginning to show their age. In addition to the inefficient single-pane windows, the interiors are now outdated and poor internal layouts no longer fulfill the district’s administrative and educational needs, according to the New York Real Estate Journal. Additionally, many spaces within these four schools are not ADA-compliant, lack proper security systems and don’t meet modern building codes and standards. Two schools have even been forced to rely on aging portable classrooms that present their own set of challenges.
More than $31 million will go directly to building repairs, renovations and structural work, including the replacement and renovation of deteriorated roofs, ceilings, windows, doors, heating and ventilation equipment, curbing and sidewalks, according to the New York Real Estate Journal. An additional $12.4 million will support work on dining areas and classrooms, and nearly $5 million will help reconstruct and update athletic fields, courts and facilities, improving physical education programs.
The district’s middle school in particular will receive upgrades to the library, media center, main office and guidance office interiors. The high school auditorium, nurse’s office and guidance office will undergo interior improvements. New asbestos-free flooring will be installed in one of the two elementary schools, along with new ceilings and exhaust systems, while the second elementary will receive a new multi-purpose room and classrooms, HVAC and electrical improvements, and other interior and exterior renovations.

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The 2,400-student district contracted BBS Architects, Landscape Architects and Engineers of Patchogue, N.Y., to provide architecture, interior design, mechanical, electrical and engineering services.
“The construction program will significantly improve the condition of all buildings occupied by students and faculty, renovate instructional spaces, promote energy efficiency, improve motorized traffic safety within school grounds, and rebuild athletic fields and tennis courts,” said BBS principal architect Roger Smith, AIA, LEED AP in an interview with the New York Real Estate Journal in March. “The district’s facilities have not received any major improvements since they were built in the 1960s and 1970s. The renovation program will bring these buildings to the 21st century’s standards of design, safety, codes, efficiency and educational facility planning.”
Projects will take place at four Shoreham schools, including one high school, one middle school and two elementary schools. Work is scheduled to begin this summer and will be completed incrementally over the next five years.
Many of the district’s structures are beginning to show their age. In addition to the inefficient single-pane windows, the interiors are now outdated and poor internal layouts no longer fulfill the district’s administrative and educational needs, according to the New York Real Estate Journal. Additionally, many spaces within these four schools are not ADA-compliant, lack proper security systems and don’t meet modern building codes and standards. Two schools have even been forced to rely on aging portable classrooms that present their own set of challenges.
More than $31 million will go directly to building repairs, renovations and structural work, including the replacement and renovation of deteriorated roofs, ceilings, windows, doors, heating and ventilation equipment, curbing and sidewalks, according to the New York Real Estate Journal. An additional $12.4 million will support work on dining areas and classrooms, and nearly $5 million will help reconstruct and update athletic fields, courts and facilities, improving physical education programs.
The district’s middle school in particular will receive upgrades to the library, media center, main office and guidance office interiors. The high school auditorium, nurse’s office and guidance office will undergo interior improvements. New asbestos-free flooring will be installed in one of the two elementary schools, along with new ceilings and exhaust systems, while the second elementary will receive a new multi-purpose room and classrooms, HVAC and electrical improvements, and other interior and exterior renovations.

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BBS Architects, Landscape Architects and Engineers of Patchogue, N.Y. has been selected as the project architect; interior designer; mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) engineer; civil engineer; and site and athletic field designer for the construction program. The firm boasts an already strong foothold in the area, having been awarded $275 million in voter-approved school construction bonds in the last two years. The firm also designed the state’s first LEED certified public school, Hampton Bays Middle School in Hampton Bays, N.Y., which received both LEED Silver and Green Ribbon School designation in 2012.

"The upcoming renovations will result in increased energy efficiency and significant savings for our district," said Dr. Lorna R. Lewis, Plainview-Old Bethpage CSD superintendent of schools, in a statement. "The construction work will bring our schools, the majority of which were built in the 1950s and 1960s, to modern standards that will accommodate current educational programs and provide healthy and attractive learning environments for our students."

“The construction program will include building envelope renovations that aim at improving energy efficiency, classroom and other interior renovations, safety and security upgrades, new technology systems, renovations of outdoor sports facilities, and infrastructure and building systems upgrades,” added BBS Principal Architect Roger Smith, AIA, LEED AP, in a statement. “Energy efficiency improvements will result in annual savings of approximately $239,000 for the school district.”

The need to reduce the district’s energy costs, and desire to upgrade safety and security were the primary factors that led to the development of the improvement program. The district’s buildings currently feature original, outdated single-pane windows, which are highly energy inefficient. Annual savings obtained through specific energy use-related upgrades will include approximately $110,000 from new LED lighting fixtures, $60,000 from new temperature control systems, $59,000 from new double pane, insulated glazing windows and $9,600 from a 50-kW rooftop solar array.

Additionally, all educational buildings will receive comprehensive security upgrades, including interior and exterior cameras, expanded interior and exterior lighting, motion detectors and a variety of lock-down related technology. Safety improvements will also include fire alarm upgrades.

“Work will begin in the summer of 2015, once the school year is over, and is expected to be completed in 2018,” said BBS Senior Associate and Director of Engineering & Technology Frederick Seeba, P.E., LEED AP, in a statement. “The majority of work, such as the replacement of all windows, masonry repairs, and other building envelope improvements, must be completed during warm weather. There will be no interruptions to educational activities as each phase of the construction program will be completed during a summer break.”

Construction will take place at the district’s seven schools located in Long Island communities of Plainview and Old Bethpage. These include John F. Kennedy High School, Plainview-Old Bethpage Middle School, Howard B. Mattlin Middle School, K-Center/Stratford Road Elementary School, Parkway Elementary School, Pasadena Elementary School, and Old Bethpage Elementary School. Two other buildings owned by the district, Jamaica Avenue and Fern Place, will also receive some renovations.

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The college encompasses 218 acres of the main campus, located in Valhalla, along with additional sites in Peekskill, Ossining, White Plains, Yonkers and Mount Vernon in New York. The new athletic fields in Valhalla will be 10 acres. The general contractor for the project is Mount Vernon, N.Y.-based Avanti Building & Construction and the structural engineer is the Nebraska-based office of Thomas Riley, PE.

BBS Architects and Engineers, located in Patchogue, N.Y., is in charge of the design and construction of the new athletic fields. “Following previous successful collaborations, SUNY Westchester Community College retained BBS’ landscape architecture and civil engineering division to design the $2.5 million improvements to the West Fields, Barrett Field, related buildings and pedestrian and vehicular roadways,” said Roger P. Smith, BBS President and Principal Architect, AIA, LEED AP in a recent statement.

The West Fields currently include a 3.7-acre baseball field and a 3-acre softball and soccer field. Construction in this area will involve re-constructing the baseball field for better orientation with the sun and to help it meet the current NCAA standards, repairs to the natural turf, re-grading the field and installing a new under-drainage system that will help improve the retention and dissipation of storm water. New construction will include a new backstop, player dugouts, a 24-inch by 8-inch Nevco Model 1506 scoreboard and an automatic irrigation system.

In addition to the renovations planned for the field itself, BBS is also planning to construct a two-story, 1,000-square-foot multi purpose building. This building will contain a concession stand, restrooms, utility rooms and a press box. “The structure will feature light gray, split-face block bearing walls, double hung windows, concrete slab on metal deck floors, shingle-covered pitched roof in the back, and a hip roof in the front,” said Joseph Rettig, BBS Director of Architecture, AIA, LEED AP.

Rettig also noted that the roof will consist of light gauge metal frame rafters. Two new sets of bleachers, eight feet wide and 40 feet long, will contain split-face block walls and a single-pitched roof. The entirety of the West Fields area will have new electrical, water distribution and sanitary sewer systems as well.

The 3.4-acre Barrett Field will also undergo renovations and construction. BBS plans to re-grade the field, install an under-drainage system and irrigation system, construct a new 12-inch by 5-inch Nevco Model 3502 scoreboard and build new bleachers next to the grandstand.

The new under-drainage systems will feature plastic collection chambers on crushed stone bases as well as perforated polyethylene pipes buried around the edge of the fields, according to John R. Longo, BBS Vice President and Co-Head of Site Planning and Design Group. “BBS also designed several overflow storm water retention basins, which will be landscaped and planted with indigenous plant species native to Westchester County,” he said.

Additional construction work will include building a new access point for emergency vehicles. This new driveway will create access between West Field’s baseball fields and the Knollwood Gate access drive. There will also be a new pedestrian path that connects West Field with the physical education building. These new driveways will help improve access to these areas for pedestrians and lessen the number of conflicts between pedestrians and vehicles in this area.

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The Garden City Union Free School District and Board of Education, political and community leaders and representatives from Patchogue, N.Y.-based architecture firm BBS Architects, as well as landscape architects and engineers, and construction manager, T.G. Nickel and Associates. Structural engineer Ysrael A. Seinuk, P.C. also served on the project.

The expansion and renovation added more classroom space and performance space for the music department as well as general education. The project consisted of the construction of the new 10,350-square-foot music wing as well as a one-story addition that houses the band, chorus, orchestra and practice room, as well as office space for the school’s music teachers.

The improvement of the school also included energy-efficient upgrades, which students recognized during the time capsule ceremony by burying outdated energy uses included incandescent light bulbs. As students, project team members and the community said “goodbye” to the remnants of the past they also welcomed in the sustainable design of the future.

“The expansion and renovation has significantly improved the quality of the music and general education facilities within the Garden City High School. The renovated interiors feature a convenient and efficient layout, which improved circulation within the school,” said Roger P. Smith, AIA, LEEP AP, BBS president and lead architect on the project. “BBS incorporated a high number of environmentally responsible design solutions into the new building and interiors, including low VOC materials and paints, high-efficiency HVAC equipment and recycled flooring materials.”

The improvements were financed through a $36.5 million construction bond approved by local voters in a referendum held in October 2009. The school was one of few projects that were approved at the time.

Prior to the project, the band and other music program students shared the school’s stage for practices, which limited rehearsal time and use of the auditorium for other activities. As a result of the expansion, the new spaces feature Kinetics Noise Control fabric-wrapped acoustic ceiling panels, which were custom designed for each room to provide the appropriate sound quality and range for each discipline, according to BBS Architects.

“The most significant challenge during the expansion was the location of the new music wing,” said Gary Schiede, project manager for BBS. “The site’s layout was constrained by surrounding buildings and provided a limited access during construction. The project team devised logistical solutions to address these challenges, including detailed staging of construction activities and advanced planning of materials delivery and storage.”

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“The approval of the bond issue is a very positive sign of the local communities willingness to invest in educational infrastructure, both on Long Island and nationwide,” said Roger Smith, BBS principal and lead architect in a statement. “In our experience, despite the struggling economy, voters will support and accept the cost of maintaining and improving school facilities as long as districts and architects engage in responsive, honest and respectful communication with the communities.”

BBS Architects and the district worked together with the community stakeholders to revise a previously submitted $122 million proposal that failed in February 2010. The district created a 40-person Community Partnership for Revitalization team to prioritize the facility and educational needs and to determine financial obligations. The CPR is made up of parents, community leaders, voters and district personnel.

With the Riverhead area focusing on a residential community, in conjunction with a housing boom during the early to mid 2000-decade, brought an increase of families with children into the community. Because of the increase, Riverhead Central School District decided to develop an expansion and renovation program to fit the needs of the 7,600 students.

The program is divided into three areas: spatial needs, facility needs and site work.

Spatial needs encompass the necessary additional classrooms and administrative offices. Site work encompasses sports fields, pick-up and drop-off loops, playgrounds, parking areas and driveways. Facility needs include required maintenance and capital improvements to existing infrastructure and facilities.

In order to minimize interruptions, the program is broken down to three phases, with multiple steps in each phase.

Phase I will involve three of the four elementary schools, Aquebogue Elementary, Philips Avenue Elementary and Riley Avenue Elementary School. Phase II is the largest and consists of a $32 million renovation and expansion of Riverhead High School, which is set to start in 2013. Phase III includes main campus improvements and renovations to the remaining schools: Riverhead Middle School, Pulaski Street School and Roanoke Avenue Elementary.

“Although the schools will not undergo LEED certification, we have incorporated a high number of green features into both new buildings and existing structures to be renovated,” said BBS project designer Kevin J. Walsh in a statement. “These include green and insulated roofs, high efficiency lighting and HVAC systems, water saving fixtures, high-performance window glazing, and tight building envelopes.”

All of the work is expected to conclude in 2015.

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