by Loumarie I. Rodriguez
BRIDGEWATER-ROXBURY-WASHINGTON — The Region 12 Board of Education Building Committee viewed four presentations from architectural firms biding to build a new Pre-K to Grade 5 consolidated elementary school at a meeting on Thursday, October 10.
The four firms were Antinozzi Associates, The S/L/A/M Collaborative, Kaestle Boos Associates and Fletcher-Thompson. Each firm presented rough sketches of Region 12’s consolidated elementary school, based on the education specifications from the school board.
Each firm was given 30 minutes for a presentation and 15 minutes to answer questions from the committee.
Petina Killiany, the temporary consultant, representing the board, led most of the questioning.
According to an email from Superintendent Dr. Patricia Cosentino, the committee hopes to make a decision on a firm in the next couple of weeks.
All four firms have significant prior work designing elementary schools around the state. The firms presented ideas for the school and a plan of action to pass a referendum all three towns can agree on.
Each firm’s design for the new school included a multi-purpose room, a cafetorium, one space for a cafeteria and an auditorium.
Antinozzi Associates said its design would reflect a small town feel. The design would allow for a new parking lot and grades would be separated in different area around the school.
Southern exposure would bring in natural light. Break-out spaces would be created for informal learning periods.
“One thing that is a little bit different that we did was we really wanted to establish an accented entry and really formalize your approach to the new school,” the Antinozzi representative said..
Antinozzi’s approach to the referendum calls for the school board to first sense how aggressive it will have to be in campaigning the new school.
According to one of the representatives, the education specifications need to be simplified and school board members need to be ready to answer questions related to the cost and the value of the project.
He also suggested the referendum be aimed for April 2014.
The firm suggested community workshops to keep the public well informed on the project and stressed the importance of getting the community involved in order to remain transparent
Snapshots of what the project looks like, the schedule, pie charts and other material need to be accessible to community members to view details of the work.
Ms. Killiany asked why the firm did not put a cost estimator into its presentation.
Antinozzi representatives explained it’s up to the board to decide to be the contractor of the new school.
The S/L/A/M Collaborative team said the school should have a playful design so students can have an enjoyable experience in school.
“Good projects, well done, will reflect the community and nobody else’s,” said a representative of the firm.
During the presentation, committee members were able to choose certain topics they wanted the firm to focus on.
Committee member Tony Bedini chose referendum because he feels that it’s not focused enough.
The firm’s presenters presented five points they believe will create a successful referendum including, clarity of the project to understand the opportunities.
Committee member Peter Tagley chose understanding the region as the next topic.
Firm representatives said they believe Region 12 craves numbers and information. Engaging the community in the design process could help create a better understanding of the purpose of the new school.
The Engineer Record rated S/L/A/M the greenest firm in Connecticut and firm representatives talked about creating an energy-efficient school.
Kaestle Boos Associates specializes in elementary schools. A main issue addressed was security for the building.
“We have been doing a number of security projects,” a representative said.
Kaestle Boos suggested computer systems that lock down the classrooms. Cameras can be put in place to monitor all areas of the building, done in way so students are comfortable.
A main difference between Kaestle Boos’ design compared to the other firms is the central office for the elementary school would be located inside Shepaug Middle High School.
The representatives briefly explained their ideas for using the existing elementary schools in the three towns if the towns vote to consolidate.
Mr. Bedini did not like Kaestle Boos listing alternative ideas for the schools, feeling that is up to the three towns to decide.
Mr. Tagley disagreed and liked the firm’s attention to that detail.
Kaestle Boos’ reason for presenting the ideas was to make sure that all questions are answered in case the subject does come up.
Kaestle Boos’ strategy for the referendum would involve getting the administration on board and making sure all groups are involved.
The firm also stressed the importance of stressing that residents will save money with consolidation.
Fletcher-Thompson recommended having the referendum as early as possibly and thinks the board should aim for May 2014.
The firm’s estimated schedule includes starting construction April 2015 and opening the school January 1, 2017.
Out of the four firms, Fletcher-Thompson was the only firm to give a cost estimate of $32,000,000, which could be reduced to $27,850,200 if the board decides to cut down on square footage.
The design would involve more windows and layers of protection, according to one of the representatives.
“Let the sun shine in,” said a Fletcher-Thompson representative. “Natural light can have a great effect on how the building feels. The building I’m envisioning is outward looking.”
The plan would create a building that fits in with the local community but still have a modern feel.
Flexible spaces would be added and the building would be one story. Fletcher-Thompson wants to building close to the wetlands in order to enhance them.
“Enhancing the wetlands can make it become functional and educational,” said a representative. “It really becomes a central design focusing element for the entire design of the site and we got excited about it because we feel there are some opportunities here.”
Fletcher-Thompson said it has a 95 percent rate with referendums and tries to work closely with communities in order to understand residents’ concerns.
The four firms were Antinozzi Associates, The S/L/A/M Collaborative, Kaestle Boos Associates and Fletcher-Thompson. Each firm presented rough sketches of Region 12’s consolidated elementary school, based on the education specifications from the school board.
Each firm was given 30 minutes for a presentation and 15 minutes to answer questions from the committee.
Petina Killiany, the temporary consultant, representing the board, led most of the questioning.
All four firms have significant prior work designing elementary schools around the state. The firms presented ideas for the school and a plan of action to pass a referendum all three towns can agree on.
Each firm’s design for the new school included a multi-purpose room, a cafetorium, one space for a cafeteria and an auditorium.
Antinozzi Associates said its design would reflect a small town feel. The design would allow for a new parking lot and grades would be separated in different area around the school.
Southern exposure would bring in natural light. Break-out spaces would be created for informal learning periods.
“One thing that is a little bit different that we did was we really wanted to establish an accented entry and really formalize your approach to the new school,” the Antinozzi representative said..
Antinozzi’s approach to the referendum calls for the school board to first sense how aggressive it will have to be in campaigning the new school.
According to one of the representatives, the education specifications need to be simplified and school board members need to be ready to answer questions related to the cost and the value of the project.
He also suggested the referendum be aimed for April 2014.
The firm suggested community workshops to keep the public well informed on the project and stressed the importance of getting the community involved in order to remain transparent
Snapshots of what the project looks like, the schedule, pie charts and other material need to be accessible to community members to view details of the work.
Ms. Killiany asked why the firm did not put a cost estimator into its presentation.
Antinozzi representatives explained it’s up to the board to decide to be the contractor of the new school.
The S/L/A/M Collaborative team said the school should have a playful design so students can have an enjoyable experience in school.
“Good projects, well done, will reflect the community and nobody else’s,” said a representative of the firm.
During the presentation, committee members were able to choose certain topics they wanted the firm to focus on.
Committee member Tony Bedini chose referendum because he feels that it’s not focused enough.
The firm’s presenters presented five points they believe will create a successful referendum including, clarity of the project to understand the opportunities.
Committee member Peter Tagley chose understanding the region as the next topic.
Firm representatives said they believe Region 12 craves numbers and information. Engaging the community in the design process could help create a better understanding of the purpose of the new school.
The Engineer Record rated S/L/A/M the greenest firm in Connecticut and firm representatives talked about creating an energy-efficient school.
Kaestle Boos Associates specializes in elementary schools. A main issue addressed was security for the building.
“We have been doing a number of security projects,” a representative said.
Kaestle Boos suggested computer systems that lock down the classrooms. Cameras can be put in place to monitor all areas of the building, done in way so students are comfortable.
A main difference between Kaestle Boos’ design compared to the other firms is the central office for the elementary school would be located inside Shepaug Middle High School.
The representatives briefly explained their ideas for using the existing elementary schools in the three towns if the towns vote to consolidate.
Mr. Bedini did not like Kaestle Boos listing alternative ideas for the schools, feeling that is up to the three towns to decide.
Mr. Tagley disagreed and liked the firm’s attention to that detail.
Kaestle Boos’ reason for presenting the ideas was to make sure that all questions are answered in case the subject does come up.
Kaestle Boos’ strategy for the referendum would involve getting the administration on board and making sure all groups are involved.
The firm also stressed the importance of stressing that residents will save money with consolidation.
Fletcher-Thompson recommended having the referendum as early as possibly and thinks the board should aim for May 2014.
The firm’s estimated schedule includes starting construction April 2015 and opening the school January 1, 2017.
Out of the four firms, Fletcher-Thompson was the only firm to give a cost estimate of $32,000,000, which could be reduced to $27,850,200 if the board decides to cut down on square footage.
The design would involve more windows and layers of protection, according to one of the representatives.
“Let the sun shine in,” said a Fletcher-Thompson representative. “Natural light can have a great effect on how the building feels. The building I’m envisioning is outward looking.”
The plan would create a building that fits in with the local community but still have a modern feel.
Flexible spaces would be added and the building would be one story. Fletcher-Thompson wants to building close to the wetlands in order to enhance them.
“Enhancing the wetlands can make it become functional and educational,” said a representative. “It really becomes a central design focusing element for the entire design of the site and we got excited about it because we feel there are some opportunities here.”
Fletcher-Thompson said it has a 95 percent rate with referendums and tries to work closely with communities in order to understand residents’ concerns.
