NEW YORK CITY — The grand opening has been held for the new East Side Middle School on New York City's Upper East Side. The school is located at 331 E. 91st St. It occupies 80,000 square feet within a mixed-use building that also include 155 cooperative apartments and retail space. The new location will expand the school's capacity from 350 to 540 seats. The DeMatteis Organizations and The Mattone Group are the project's developers.
CARLSBAD, CALIF. — McCarthy Building Cos. has begun construction for 11 new educational buildings at Carlsbad High School, located at 3557 Lancer Way in Carlsbad. Construction of the one- and two-story education facilities, which will total 99,000 square feet of new classroom, performing arts, vocational education lab and food-service space, is the third and final phase of an $86 million renovation of Carlsbad High School that began in June 2008. Final completion is slated for mid-October 2011. Gafcon is the program manager for the Carlsbad High School renovation project, and Perkins+Will is the architect. Originally built in 1957, the high school currently has an enrollment of nearly 2,900 students.
BOSTON — The recent expansion of the Tufts University School of Dental Medicine has been certified LEED-Silver by the U.S. Green Building Council. The project added five stories and 95,000 square feet to the existing 10-story building, which is located at One Kneeland St. in Boston's Chinatown neighborhood. Sustainable features of the project include a high-performance building envelope, a design that promotes the use of daylighting, and state-of-the-art mechanical and plumbing systems. The measures will help the building use 20 to 30 percent less energy and 30 to 45 percent less water. ARC/Architectural Resources Cambridge was the project architect, and Shawmut Design & Construction was the general contractor. The building opened late last year.
OCEANSIDE, CALIF. — CB Richard Ellis has handled Grace International Churches & Ministries’ $6.5 million purchase of a 22,981-square-foot church facility, located at 1602 South El Camino Real in Oceanside, from Evangelical Christian Credit Union. Built on a 15-acre site in 2005, the property includes a bookstore, a kitchen, a fellowship hall, administrative offices, classrooms and sanctuary seating for 1,000. Eric Knowles of CBRE’s Religious Facilities Group represented both the buyer and the seller in the transaction.
BOSTON — Massport has selected Skanska USA to complete a $48 million expansion and renovation of Terminal C at Logan Airport in Boston. The project will include the construction of a consolidated baggage check point, the construction of expansion shell space, the replacement of the main ticketing hall, and the replacement of mechanical and electrical systems, including a new HVAC system. Construction will begin THIS MONTH and is expected to take 18 months to complete.
ENCINITAS, CALIF. — General contractor Barnhart Balfour Beatty has begun construction of the $8.8 million San Dieguito Academy Performing Arts Center located at 800 Santa Fe Drive in Encinitas. The new 17,120-square-foot facility will consist of theater and music wings, the former including a 225-seat indoor theater, classrooms and practice areas, dressing rooms, a scenery lab, a 500-seat outdoor stage with sound reflectors, and storage space for props and sets. The music wing will feature a 3,700-square-foot rehearsal hall, six soundproof practice rooms, a music library, an instrument storage room and a recording arts classroom. Designed by Tarzana, Calif.-based John Sergio Fisher & Associates, the project is slated for completion in fall 2011.
LINCOLN, NEB. — The City of Lincoln has signed off on Haymarket Arena, a $168 million arena that will replace Pershing Center in Lincoln. Situated within the $344 million West Haymarket Development revitalization project, the 16,000-seat arena will be home to the University of Nebraska men’s and women’s basketball programs. Designed by DLR Group, Bahr Vermeer Haecker Architects and Clark Enersen Partners, the facility will feature 32 suites and club and loge seating. The arena is expected to open in 2013.
BELMONT, MASS. — Skanska USA has broken ground for the construction of the new Wellington Elementary School in Belmont. The project began with the demolition of the existing buildings. The new school will consist of two buildings connected by a two-story core that will house administrative offices, a media center, and art and music rooms. The 88,000-square-foot school will also be pursuing certification as a Massachusetts High-Performance Green School. Sustainable features will include a geothermal HVAC system, high-efficiency mechanical systems, and increased daylighting. Jonathan Levi Architects is the project's lead architect, and Burt/Hill Associates is the associated architect. During construction, Wellington Elementary students will be relocated to a modular classroom building at Belmont High School.
NEW YORK CITY — The Abraham Joshua Heschel School has announced plans to build a new location that will expand and consolidate its campuses. The new building, a nine-story, 142,000-square-foot structure, will be constructed at the West End Avenue and West 61st Street, adjacent to Heschel's high school campus. Its lower and middle schools will relocate from West 89th Street and West 91st Street, respectively. The new location will allow the school to expand its overall enrollment from 789 to more than 1,000 students. Construction is expected to begin in September, with completion anticipated in fall 2012. The project architect is Gruzen Samton. Levien & Co. is providing project management services.
SUGAR LAND, TEXAS — Opening Day Partners and the Sugar Land City Council will bring a $30 million minor league baseball stadium to Sugar Land, and it will open just in time for the 2012 season. In a Letter of Intent, Opening Day says it will sign a 20-year lease on the stadium with a 10-year renewal option. While a site has yet to be selected, potential locations include the interchange of U.S. Highway 59 and University Boulevard. In the offseason, the stadium will be used for concerts and other events. Funding for the project will come from sales tax revenues and a $5 million investment from Opening Day.