Location: Chesapeake, Virginia
Client: Chesapeake Public Schools
Size: 40,070 SF
Cost: $2,867,095
Completion: 1998

The addition and renovations to Oscar Smith High School included a two-story classroom addition, a courtyard infill, and additional renovations. Additional site parking was also provided.

The two-story classroom addition includes seven classrooms, six special education classrooms, business classroom, two science classrooms, computer lab, business lab, catering lab, ISS classroom, and two health education classrooms (which can be used as an orchestra room by opening an operable partition). Other support spaces such as toilets, mechanical, electrical, and custodial rooms were included. The two-story addition was placed on the east end of the existing classroom wing in an area designated by the original design to be the location of a future addition.

The courtyard infill addition provided additional seating capacity for the student dining area. The infill area is currently an outdoor landscaped courtyard bounded by the existing student dining, two corridors, and the administrative offices. The infill will maintain a 12-foot side landscaped interior planter to buffer the dining area from the administrative offices. Skylights shall be provided in the infill addition to maintain a high natural light level for the student dining areas and adjacent spaces.

Interior renovations were predominantly alterations to existing rooms that modify existing programmed uses. The new programmed spaces included an art lab, guidance office, graphic lab with airbrush and computer graphics stations, and relocation of the existing book storage room.

Contract documents included construction phasing in order to continue safe operation of the school while constructing the additions and renovating the existing facilities during the school year.