A 19th century steam plant has been adapted into the Rachel Carson Music and Campus Center for Middlesex School, an independent secondary school in Concord, Mass. The updated 22,000-sf facility includes a 134-seat recital hall and multiple practice spaces, gathering spaces, and classrooms.
The former steam plant, which was once used to power the school, was updated to fit its new purpose but elements of its former life were included in the final design; the original smokestack has become the centerpiece within the Rachel Carson Music and Campus Center.
Photo courtesy of Windover Construction.
The building also contains many updated features with a focus on sustainability, such as a geo-thermal heat and cooling system, a green roof, and specialized window glazing for internal environmental control.
Windover Construction, the project’s contractor, collaborated with Marvin Windows to update the theater space with ionized window glazing to electronically shade and darken depending on the performance occurring within. Theater consultant Martin Vinik and acoustic consulting firm Acentech were also brought in to perfect the acoustics of the new space.
Photo courtesy of Windover Construction.
CBT Architects designed the project, which completed construction in June.
Photo courtesy of Windover Construction.
Related Stories
K-12 Schools | Nov 1, 2022
Safety is the abiding design priority for K-12 schools
With some exceptions, architecture, engineering, and construction firms say renovations and adaptive reuse make up the bulk of their work in the K-12 schools sector.
BAS and Security | Oct 19, 2022
The biggest cybersecurity threats in commercial real estate, and how to mitigate them
Coleman Wolf, Senior Security Systems Consultant with global engineering firm ESD, outlines the top-three cybersecurity threats to commercial and institutional building owners and property managers, and offers advice on how to deter and defend against hackers.
Education Facilities | Oct 13, 2022
A 44-acre campus serves as a professional retreat for public-school educators in Texas
A first-of-its-kind facility for public schools in Texas, the Holdsworth Center serves as a retreat for public educators, supporting reflection and dialogue.
K-12 Schools | Sep 21, 2022
Architecture that invites everyone to dance
If “diversity” is being invited to the party in education facilities, “inclusivity” is being asked to dance, writes Emily Pierson-Brown, People Culture Manager with Perkins Eastman.
| Sep 7, 2022
K-8 school will help students learn by conducting expeditions in their own communities
In August, SHP, an architecture, design, and engineering firm, broke ground on the new Peck Expeditionary Learning School in Greensboro, N.C. Guilford County Schools, one of the country’s 50 largest school districts, tapped SHP based on its track record of educational design.
Giants 400 | Sep 1, 2022
Top 100 K-12 School Contractors and CM Firms for 2022
Gilbane, Core Construction, Skanska, and Balfour Beatty head the ranking of the nation's largest K-12 school sector contractors and construction management (CM) firms for 2022, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Giants 400 | Sep 1, 2022
Top 70 K-12 School Engineering + EA Firms for 2022
AECOM, Jacobs, WSP, and CMTA top the ranking of the nation's largest K-12 school sector engineering and engineering/architecture (EA) firms for 2022, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Giants 400 | Sep 1, 2022
Top 160 K-12 School Architecture + AE Firms for 2022
PBK, DLR Group, Huckabee, and Stantec head the ranking of the nation's largest K-12 school sector architecture and architecture/engineering (AE) firms for 2022, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
| Aug 24, 2022
California’s investment in ‘community schools’ could transform K-12 education
California has allocated $4.1-billion to develop ‘community schools’ that have the potential to transform K-12 education.
Giants 400 | Aug 22, 2022
Top 90 Construction Management Firms for 2022
CBRE, Alfa Tech, Jacobs, and Hill International head the rankings of the nation's largest construction management (as agent) and program/project management firms for nonresidential and multifamily buildings work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
