PROJECT  Westbrook Elementary School

LOCATION  Bethesda, , 

PROJECT COMPLETION DATE  8/31/2013

ARCHITECT  Muse Architects, PC

ASSOCIATED ARCHITECT  

OWNER/CLIENT  Montgomery County Public Schools, Division of Construction

CONTRACTOR  Hess Construction

PHOTOGRAPHER  

Eric Taylor

DESIGN TEAM

Stephen Muse, FAIA Principal-in-Charge; William Kirwan, AIA, LEED® AP, Principal; John Thorp, AIA; John Martinez

SUMMARY DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT:

This project is a 44,000 square foot addition to Westbrook Elementary School. The original portion of the school was built in 1938 as a New Deal work project. Two additions were built in 1946 and 1954 that added additional classroom space and a Multi-purpose Room. This 21st century state-of-the-art addition includes Kindergarten classrooms, Grade 1-5 classrooms, a Gymnasium, Music and Art classrooms, and renovations to the existing Multi-purpose Room. Three additional classrooms were planned for within the addition in order to accommodate projected future enrollment. The addition was positioned to mitigate various environmental constraints all around the existing building that include stream buffers, a 100-year flood plain, and specimen trees. The addition was conceived as a three-story brick structure about a courtyard in order to minimize the footprint on a site with very limited buildable area. The addition is rendered in simple volumes of brick, shingle roofs, with traditionally detailed windows and doors, in respect to the historic brick school house and surrounding residential neighborhood. While the project was not formally LEED certified, it employs sustainable design strategies, materials, and construction practices, that parallel LEED Silver requirements. Brick products were an integral part of the aesthetic and sustainable design strategy.

IMAGE CAPTIONS & CREDITS

IMAGE 1  Main School Building with Addition Beyond (Photos © Eric Taylor, EricTaylorPhoto.com)

IMAGE 2  Addition with 1954 Classroom Wing Beyond (Photos © Eric Taylor, EricTaylorPhoto.com)

IMAGE 3  New Play Terraces with Addition and Kindergarten Loggia Beyond (Photos © Eric Taylor, EricTaylorPhoto.com)

IMAGE 4  Kindergarten Loggia (Photos © Eric Taylor, EricTaylorPhoto.com)

IMAGE 5  New Gymnasium (Photos © Eric Taylor, EricTaylorPhoto.com)

IMAGE 6  

IMAGE 7  

Media For Download
Project PDF