RYE SCHOOLS, RYE, NEW YORK

a. Project Description: An $11,000,000 overall school district expansion and improvement program, expanded three elementary schools and a 6, 7, 8 Middle School. They are all planned for technology in education. The Middle School is visually linked to the existing High School complex by the selection of matching stone, as well as through the use of design elements such as arches, multipaned windows, and a tower that quote from the original building, yet are interpreted in a fresh, modern way. A first honor award for community design from the AIA confirms the architectural response.

b. Special Challenges: Included the need to strengthen both the identity and the separateness of the Middle School, which until then had been a "second-class citizen". In order to reinforce this separate Middle School identity, the architects totally reworked the site to provide separate entrances, parking, drop-off area, and safe circulation system for the Middle School and the High School. To strengthen its visual identity, the entrance to the Middle School was brought forward, emphasized, and sheltered by the new architecture. An historic preservation award from the City Landmarks Commission and another from the New York Preservation League attest to the project's response to the historic context.

c. Meeting the Educational Needs:  The planners made a community-wide study of the school district's space needs and compared different solutions. Once it was determined that a 6, 7, 8 Middle school was the best educational solution, the architects studied space utilization of the entire High/Middle School complex in detail to arrive at the most efficient and separate scheme for the Middle School. The program was expanded to include a commons in order to establish a "turf" for the younger Middle School children and an attractive setting for various school and community meetings and functions.

d. Cost Benefit Studies: Although a hand-cut ashlar stone facade to match the existing context was required, after many cost benefit studies, it was economically installed as a 6" veneer on a standard metal stud wall system supported by lightweight steel structural members. Other building materials and systems utilized were modest in cost and are easily maintained. The building's systems feature state-of-the-art energy conservation and environmental controls with computer-controlled temperature and monitoring systems.

e. Project Facts:

1) District: Rye City Schools
2) Occupancy: September 1992
3) Grade Level: 6 - 8
4) Capacity: 400
5) Site Size: 10 Acres
6) Area: 16,000 SF New;1,393.5 SM;30,000 SF Renovated
7) Cost: Middle School - $3,000,000; Elementary Schools - $3,100,000; Miscellaneous Improvement - $3,800,000
8) Schedule: The projects were all completed on time and under budget

>> Return to List of Projects