flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Philadelphia builds a new school in under 18 months, thanks to a P3 pact between the school district and developer

K-12 Schools

Philadelphia builds a new school in under 18 months, thanks to a P3 pact between the school district and developer

Gilbane and Stantec were key players in the design and construction of Propel Academy.


By John Caulfield, Senior Editor | September 5, 2021
The Northeast Community Propel Academy adds much-needed educational capacity to this section of Philadelphia. Images: Courtesy of Gilbane

The Northeast Community Propel Academy adds much-needed student capacity to this burgeoning area of Philadelphia. Images courtesy of Gilbane

Last Tuesday, the Northeast Community Propel Academy, a K-8 school with the capacity for 1,660 students, opened In Philadelphia. The 180,000-sf building was financed and constructed through a public-private partnership between the School District of Philadelphia and Gilbane Development Company, which provided turnkey development for the new school.

Gilbane Building Company acted as the project’s design-builder and hired Stantec as its architect. Gilbane was one of three firms that submitted bid proposals to the school district in the fall of 2017, and received the contract the following January, says Susan Tully, Senior Project Manager and Market Leader for Gilbane’s K-12 Center of Excellence. The school’s design was completed by October 2019, and after some municipal delays construction began in March 2020, “on the day the world stopped” because of the coronavirus pandemic, quipped Tully.

Propel Academy is in a multicultural section of Philadelphia that “is booming,” says Tully, with lots of service sector workers. But the number of school seats hadn’t kept pace with the community’s growth; Tully notes that another school there, built for 600 students, now serves 2,000. The district “knew they need to get a new school built quickly,” she recalls.

The school is on land that previously had served as baseball and softball fields. As part of the P3 agreement, Gilbane Development purchased the land from the school district for $1, and upon completion of construction on August 19, 2021 sold the property and school back to the school district for $79 million.

“Speed to market was a driver” for the P3 arrangement, says Luis Vildostegui, Stantec’s Senior Principal and Education Leader, whom BD+C interviewed with Jennifer Grafton, Stantec’s Project Manager and Senior Associate. Vildostegui notes that Propel Academy’s design reflects the school district’s gravitation toward a more socialized teaching model that focuses on learning with peers.

 

SCHOOL FEATURES COLLABORATIVE ZONES

Gilbane and Stantec, with Fengate Asset Management, were part of a construction financing consortium that in June broke ground on six K-12 schools in Prince George’s County, Md. This was the first P3 for schools in the nation, and it’s expected to cut in half the time it takes to complete those schools, which are scheduled to open in 2023.

In Philadelphia, the Propel Academy project “is one of the most collaborative I’ve worked on in my career,” says Tully. One of its advantages was Gilbane’s relationship with Stantec, which provided architecture, interior design, and civil engineering services. “We were able to advance the construction before the designs were completed, which fast-tracked the project,” says Grafton. And because Stantec had worked previously with the school district and Gilbane, “we could act as an intermediary” when decisions were made, says Vildostegui.

Stantec’s office in Philadelphia is right across the street from the school district’s, so it set up a big room where all of the project’s stakeholders could meet conveniently. “We were all there, resolving problems from the beginning,” says Vildostegui. Any additions or changes during the design or construction process had to be “cost-neutral solutions,” says Tully. (Nicole Ward, AIA, the school district’s design manager, was its liaison on this project.)

Those discussions included “challenging some basic assumptions,” says Vildostegui, like the building’s placement, which is adjacent to a park that exposures city kids to natural environments they might not see otherwise. During the permitting stage, the building team and school district also hashed out whether a retention basin on the site should be above or below ground (they ultimately chose the latter).

The building team’s early collaboration allowed its members to react quicker when there were materials shortages or delays. “We didn’t need to make compromises,” says Tully.

Outdoor playground at Propel Academy

The Propel Academy was build on land that once served as ball fields, and is located near a tree-lined park.

 

A ‘SHINING SUCCESS STORY’ FOR P3s

Propel Academy is organized into clusters of classrooms and collaborative zones for small learning groups. There are six classrooms per grade for grades 1-5, and nine classrooms per grade for grades 6-8. The classrooms are positioned around shared media and tech commons within each grade level house, and the number of classrooms can be adjusted as needed.

The school also has science labs, music rooms, and “exploration” spaces, says Grafton. “It’s transformative,” says Vildostegui about the school’s design, that had to meet what Tully calls the school district’s “strict design standards” that are informed by LEED and WELL guidelines.

Tully sees Propel Academy as a “test case” for the school district, and believes P3 financial agreements will be more in vogue for financing school construction to meet clients’ demands for speed. “It’s a shining success story” for the P3 approach, adds Vildostegui. “It’s not for every project, but it’s quicker than a traditional design-bid-build because the issues get moved upfront.”

Related Stories

| Sep 22, 2014

Sound selections: 12 great choices for ceilings and acoustical walls

From metal mesh panels to concealed-suspension ceilings, here's our roundup of the latest acoustical ceiling and wall products. 

| Sep 9, 2014

Using Facebook to transform workplace design

As part of our ongoing studies of how building design influences human behavior in today’s social media-driven world, HOK’s workplace strategists had an idea: Leverage the power of social media to collect data about how people feel about their workplaces and the type of spaces they need to succeed.

| Sep 7, 2014

Behind the scenes of integrated project delivery — successful tools and applications

The underlying variables and tools used to manage collaboration between teams is ultimately the driving for success with IPD, writes CBRE Healthcare's Megan Donham.

| Sep 4, 2014

Best of education design: 11 projects win AIA CAE architecture awards [slideshow]

The CAE Design Excellence Award honors educational facilities that the jury believes should serve as an example of a superb place in which to learn. Projects range from a design school in Maryland to an elementary school in Washington.

Sponsored | | Sep 4, 2014

Learning by design: Steel curtain wall system blends two school campuses

In this the new facility, middle school and high school classroom wings flank either side of the auditorium and media center. A sleek, glass-and-steel curtain wall joins them together, creating an efficient, shared space. SPONSORED CONTENT

| Sep 3, 2014

New designation launched to streamline LEED review process

The LEED Proven Provider designation is designed to minimize the need for additional work during the project review process.

| Sep 2, 2014

Ranked: Top green building sector AEC firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

AECOM, Gensler, and Turner top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest green design and construction firms. 

| Aug 27, 2014

Study looks at lessons from involving children in K-12 school design

A study examining what architects can learn from children, especially during the design process, is being carried out through the University of Sheffield's school of architecture. 

| Aug 14, 2014

8 do's and don'ts for completing an HVAC life cycle cost assessment

There are many hurdles to overcome when completing a life cycle cost assessment. RMF Engineering’s Seth Spangler offers some words of advice regarding LCCAs.

| Aug 14, 2014

Life cycle cost analysis using energy modeling

A life cycle cost analysis helps a school district decide which HVAC system to use in $198 million worth of future building projects.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category



K-12 Schools

Designing for dyslexia: How architecture can address neurodiversity in K-12 schools

Architects play a critical role in designing school environments that support students with learning differences, particularly dyslexia, by enhancing social and emotional competence and physical comfort. Effective design principles not only benefit students with dyslexia but also improve the learning experience for all students and faculty. This article explores how key design strategies at the campus, classroom, and individual levels can foster confidence, comfort, and resilience, thereby optimizing educational outcomes for students with dyslexia and other learning differences.


halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021