A Sneak Peak At LB'S New School

Editor’s note: School District 65 recently offered a media tour of the new Lake Bluff Elementary School, led by principle architect Tim McGrath of the BLDD deisgn firm. To cover the tour, GazeboNews recruited Kevin Considine, a Lake Bluff dad whose two daughters will attend the school. Here’s what he found…

By Kevin Considine

Construction of Lake Bluff Elementary School is behind schedule, but the building is ahead of the curve on everything else. Led by principle architect Tim McGrath, the design team has built an effective and fun learning environment that is both environmentally efficient and safe.

Everywhere you see the marriage of form and function. Having to work around the then-operating Central School meant wedging the new building into the rear area of the lot. It turns out this was ideal, forcing a primarily southeast orientation. This provides lots of natural light, but not the heat of direct southern exposure. The school has two wings, academic and administrative. The two-story academic wing is built around a central courtyard, which has several purposes. It brings light deep into the school, provides an outdoor project or assembly space and also serves as an orientation device for navigating the school.

That orientation also fed the color choices. Bright hues of kiwi, orange and grape line the corridors of the academic wing, bringing cheer to the space. The color-coding will also make it easier for children, particularly the younger set, to learn their way around the building. The classrooms seem enormous. At 1,150 square feet, they are larger than most parents' first apartments. All the classrooms are bright and airy, some with an enviable view of the 10th fairway next door. Many couple the large central area with a small conference room that can be used for teacher workspace or group projects.

Prior to designing the space, the architects asked many students if they could have anything in the school, what it would be. The designers were struck by one boy's idea of a tree house. This influenced

the design of the Media Center, with a huge photo-sensitive skylight surrounded by a leaf-green ceiling and white tile clouds.

LBES will be one of the first LEED registered public schools in the country. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a building certification program run by the U.S. Green Building Council. There are four classifications, Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Overall classification is based on

scores across five categories; sustainable sites; water efficiency; energy and atmosphere; materials and resources; and indoor environment quality. LBES is currently on track to achieve Silver certification. Why not Gold or Platinum? According to Jane Lair, Director of Business Services for District 65, it was the level that was both affordable and attainable.

"To reach for higher levels would mean we had to incorporate other elements that we knew we could not do," she said. "An example might be geo-thermal heating. Our site does not allow for such a thing, nor could we afford it."

To achieve LEED Silver certification, the exterior walls are super-insulated and the school has installed a high-performance HVAC system to bring in fresh air and efficiently heat and cool it. Moreover, most of the lighting is occupant-activated, which means it stays off until someone enters a room, therefore using less electricity. Another requirement for LEED certification is low VOC (volatile organic compound) materials. That means using paint and materials that won't emit unpleasant odors and gases – "no new school smell." Construction crews are even going to grind up the asphalt from the old Central School parking lot and use it to pave the new one.

Safety and security have been a key consideration throughout the facility. The entire school will be secured during the day. Parents or late arrivals will have a check-in window that resembles a drive-up bank teller. In addition, double security doors separate the academic and administrative wings. Facilities like the gym and common areas can then be used for community functions in the evening while keeping the academic areas secure.

The big question is the timing. It's been a little over a year since the ground breaking and the project is a few weeks behind schedule. The final opening date is a moving target. According to Ms. Lair, parents said it was more important to start school on time rather than wait for the new building to be completed. School will start on Sept. 8, as planned, but students will be housed off-site for an as-yet-undetermined period of time. The plan calls for grades K-3 to go to East School and grades 4-5 and multi-age to hold classes at Christ Church on Waukegan and Hwy 60 in Lake Forest.

Comments

[lguido]

Great article (and pictures!)- makes one even more excited for the new school and all that it has to offer. It's unfortunate that the school opening is delayed but it is much more important to get it done right! Thanks for the update...

[Jennifer]

Terrific! Love the colored hallways! So much natural light too!!

[Anon]

While the new school looks bright and shiny, it’s hard not to think about the ongoing intrusion the delays and almost certain post-occupancy construction activities will represent.

The District has been aware of the current three week delay for months, but until recently continued to peer through rose colored glasses and say the delay was based upon a July 21 completion date. Don’t worry they implied, there are still seven weeks until the Sept. 8th start date…we’ll close the gap then with time to spare. Now we learn, through the Gazebo News and Pioneer Press (or the District website if one happened onto it), that this is not so and the contingency plan will be activated. For many, this is no surprise but instead the realization of expectations held since before the referendum passed more than two years ago. The greater, more lasting, surprise is yet to come. That is, that the new school will likely include far less than advertised. No doubt the board and administration will continue to weave the tale that it’s the most wonderful thing ever done. In the meantime, our kids will experience a second year of education in a construction zone and the shortcomings that go along with the same.

The insult on top of the injury is the decision to send the 4th and 5th grade classes to Lake Forest’s Christ Church where they will, undoubtedly, face religious iconography (and perhaps more) throughout the day which may or may not conform to the faith in which they are being raised. This is simply a continuation of reckless behavior initiated by the administration and the now, not so courageously, retired David Vick (way to see your pet project through!!). At the very least, the Christ Church decision is thoughtless; worse, one that may impose a potentially offensive and uncomfortable experience on a 4th or 5th grade child. All so that the administration and Board can say they started to the school year on time. Bravo!!

[Bruno]

Dist 65 repeatedly told us that the new Lake Bluff Elementary was on schedule and would open on time. From the outset many of us had suspected that this was little more than wishful thinking. Construction delays do not surprise me.

In fact, as recently as the last couple of weeks Dist 65 continued the mantra of opening “on time” in quotes they provided to the Lake Forester and in info they posted on the school website. Embarrassingly, the issue of Top Notch which arrived in my mailbox just a few days ago said opening the new school on time “is the plan”.

Yet a few days before Top notch had even arrived Dist 65 had announced that the opening would be delayed and off site classroom space would be needed. Further, we are told that the late opening is “due to construction delays that have consistently kept the project three weeks behind schedule”. Which is the truth? Was the school on schedule and ready to open right on time as of just a week ago or was it consistently 3 weeks behind schedule?

Moving classes to Christ Church will throw a wrench in the schedules of those families who have children who walk to school. New bus schedules (and perhaps fees schedules) will need to be arranged. While it is indeed generous for a church to offer space to Dist 65 there can be no way that temporary space in a Church will provide our children with a learning environment they deserve. Hopefully the time spent in this temporary space will number in the days and not weeks…

Maybe Dist 65 can use the “$2 million” (opps only $500K?) from the sale of West School of cover the costs of temporarily housing, busing and educating children at an alternate site.

The Dist continues to tell us that the new Lake Bluff Elem gym is bigger than the old Central School gym. Is that the full truth? The new gym will be just slightly larger than the old gym but will need to serve almost twice as many children.

The Dist continues to send out press releases with a downright silly quote about total green space including 'blacktop' areas. The new school will have almost twice as many students but far less outdoor green space for kids to use. The playground for the youngest children will be in the shade most of the year.

The latest Top Notch speaks of a new logo and enhanced graphics that will be added to the School website. Dist 65 should be far more concerned about accurate and timely information. Just tell us like it is.