Read the Full Article... - Cristo Rey Columbus High School

fo
rc
om
me
rci
al
u
se
Advertising Supplement to Columbus Business First | March 6, 2015
-N
ot
CRISTO REY COLUMBUS FROM THE GROUND UP
C
©
Am
eri
ca
Jo
u
es
s
Bu
sin
nC
Cristo Rey Columbus was established in 2012. For the
first year, classes were held at a temporary building in
Franklinton while Jim Foley, Cristo Rey president, was
looking for a new location close to Downtown. Jim
Negron, Executive Vice President at Corna Kokosing,
assisted with the preliminary site review three years
before the project ever got started.
ity
Gaining Vision
rn
als
risto Rey Columbus High School is a Catholic college-preparatory high school targeting
under-served youth in Central Ohio by utilizing a work study program to pay for about
half of the cost of their education and gain real-world
job experience. Cristo Rey Columbus is the 26th Cristo
Rey high school in the United States and is supported
by the Columbus Catholic Diocese. The school has a
98% graduation rate and 99% of its graduates pursue
higher education.
The Old Ohio School for the Deaf was selected as the
new location. The building was built in 1899 and is
located adjacent to the Columbus Metropolitan Library (CML) Main Branch and the Topiary Park. The
School for the Deaf served hearing-impaired children
until 1953, when it was relocated, and since then
the building housed numerous different functions
and had undergone several renovations. It had been
used as office space, then slated by a developer for
conversion into condominiums (a project that was
shelved), studied for use by CML, and most recently,
sat vacant for several years. Cristo Rey purchased the
building from CML and hired Columbus architectural
firm Schooley Caldwell Associates (SCA) to design the
extensive renovation that was needed to return the
building to its original use as a school, albeit one that
would need to accommodate modern technology
and amenities.
Cristo Rey decided to use a Construction Manager
at Risk (CMR) construction approach for the project,
and, following a competitive selection process, Corna
Kokosing was chosen as the construction manager.
“It was an honor to work on this project with Cristo
Rey. Taking an abandoned building that was in bad
shape and restoring it to the beautiful school build-
18 Corna Kokosing : : From the Ground Up Cristo Rey Columbus High School
: : corna.com
Advertising Supplement to Columbus Business First | March 6, 2015
se
ing it is today is something we are very
proud to be a part of,” said Negron.
me
rci
al
u
At the beginning of the project, SCA
worked closely with Cristo Rey to establish some overarching goals: modern,
cutting-edge technological capabilities,
flexible spaces, and durable finishes
were important, but perhaps the most
critical goal was designing and constructing the renovation in accordance
with historical tax credits.. The entire
design and construction team worked
with these goals in mind throughout the
project.
rc
om
Congratulations to
Corna Kokosing & Cristo Rey!
-N
ot
fo
...transforming Columbus one student at a time
Winning Team
In order for a project to be completed on
time, on budget, and on target with the
Owner’s goals, the project team must
be cohesive, professional, and have the
experience needed. Corna Kokosing has
built and/or renovated almost a dozen
private high schools in Columbus, nine
of which are faith- based schools, and
all of which have hired Corna Kokosing
back for future work. Corna Kokosing has
more private K-12 experience than any
other construction firm in Central Ohio.
rn
als
brunercorp.com
Bu
sin
es
s
Jo
u
Proud to be part of this ‘Head of the Class’ project.
Am
eri
ca
nC
ity
Congratulations Cristo Rey
on your amazing new facility.
©
– Crawford Mechanical Services, Inc.
Bill Crawford, President • 614-478-9424
Schooley Caldwell Associates also has
extensive experience in renovations –
approximately 80% of the firm’s work
involves renovation. The firm had designed several renovations to the Old
Deaf School building over the past 35
years, none of which came to fruition.
SCA President Bob Loversidge comments, “We’ve been wanting to see this
building used to its potential for many
years, and returning it to its original purpose as a school seemed like a particularly ideal use. Cristo Rey is now an exciting part of the Discovery District, and a
landmark Columbus building has been
restored. I couldn’t be happier with the
results.”
Understanding that the project was a
complex renovation, and that updating
the 1890’s building with current technology and mechanical systems would be a
monumental task, Corna Kokosing knew
that a strong MEP team was necessary
for a successful project. Corna Kokosing
led a Design Build MEP process as well
as the Civil Engineering in conjunction
with SCA’s Architectural and Structural
work to expedite construction documents and also work through as much
coordination as possible ahead of time.
The MEP contractors included Mid City
Electric, Bruner Mechanical, Crawford
Mechanical, and SA Communale.
Corna Kokosing helped drive completion of the design and documents so
that construction and completion dates
would be met. The school purchased the
building in May 2013 and school needed
to open at this location in August 2014.
The construction and design team
were able to work together to break the
scopes of work into packages to allow
demolition and exterior work to immediately commence as interior design and
documents continued.
Corna Kokosing was able to self-perform
a great deal of the trade work including
structural demolition, concrete, structural steel, rough and finish carpentry,
ceilings, and metal stud work. The use
of self-perform work allowed unforeseen
items to be dealt with rapidly and efficiently so that the schedule was maintained.
SCA, with their vast historic restora-
Corna Kokosing : : From the Ground Up Cristo Rey Columbus High School
March 6, 2015 | Advertising Supplement to Columbus Business First
It was important to the Owner to keep
some of the old charm that the building
had back in its original use as a school.
The project team was able to keep much
of the building’s ornate architecture and
refinish the original hardwood floors.
Plaster restoration was done on all exterior walls and in the corridors of the first
through third floors, and original ceiling
heights were preserved.
The design also included a new groundlevel entrance in the center of the east
façade, facing the Topiary Park. This
was developed to overcome the accessibility problem caused by the fact that
original building access to the ground
and first floors required using stairs. To
allow for ADA access and also to create
a noble grand entry/gathering space, the
se
me
rci
al
u
rc
om
fo
-N
ot
rn
als
ity
Bu
sin
es
s
With such a major portion of the project
being funded through historic tax credits, from both the state and federal level,
Corna Kokosing needed to work closely
with SCA and their historical consultant,
Benjamin D. Rickey & Co., to be sensitive to the building’s original design and
character while incorporating modern
systems. The team worked together to
restore and preserve as much as possible. Partitions were removed from corridors and rooms; studs and deteriorated drywall were removed from original
building walls. At some point during previous renovations, the original two-story
gymnasium had been divided in half
and another floor had been added for
additional office space; this intervening
floor was demolished so that the original
gym could be restored. The gym ceiling,
which was tongue and groove pine, had
also survived and was restored to its
original state.
614.628.0300 • [email protected]
www.schooleycaldwell.com
Jo
u
Preserving the
Historical Elements
nC
The team had a lot to get done in a very
short period of time. Keeping the tight
schedule in mind, demolition of demolition of the building began in June 2013
and ran into September. The team then
began working on the structural openings to enlarge many of the original
classrooms. Interior construction and
MEP rough in only commenced in November 2013 and the first three floors of
the building were turned over to the client on August 2, 2014 with the first day
of classes beginning August 4. The fourth
and fifth floors were later completed in
December.
The current use of the building floors
are now offices, gymnasium (restored
original), kitchen, cafeteria (previously a
swimming pool), and locker rooms. The
second and third floors include classrooms, offices, and a conference rooms.
The chapel, biology lab, chemistry lab,
music room, and art room make up the
fourth floor, and the fifth floor includes
storage and mechanical rooms with
room for a possible expansion.
ca
Cristo Rey had a tremendous opportunity to establish and grow a unique,
faith-based, private school in Columbus.
The Owner knew the new facility would
be a significant factor in student/faculty recruitment and retention, branding Cristo Rey’s program, as well as the
entire learning experience. The project
team understood that focusing on the
Student Centered Learning Environment
was key to making the school a success.
Congratulations, Cristo Rey Columbus!
THANK YOU!
Corna Kokosing for including
us on the Cristo Rey project.
Am
eri
A New and
Innovative School
front entry was excavated out and new
entrance doors and windows installed to
take visitors into the first floor. The first
and second floors were then connected
at the midpoint of the building with a
monumental staircase.
©
tion portfolio, put together an amazing team from their office and teamed
with Kabil Associates for structural engineering. Their team as well as Dynamix
Engineering (mechanical and electrical
engineer) and EMH&T (civil engineer),
worked directly with Corna Kokosing to
execute the plan efficiently and rapidly.
Structural steel work occurred on
the fourth and fifth floors of the
84,000-square-foot building. Existing
classrooms had to be doubled in size,
requiring the removal of 30-inch thick
masonry walls. The structural steel work
that was done by Kirt Baker, Corna Kokosing ironwork, and his team won a
Builders Exchange (BX) Craftsmanship
Award. Kirt and his team saw-cut vertical
joints in the 24-30 inch brick walls and
while using a chain hoist and rigging,
inserted massive C-channels (weighing
1,800 pounds) into the saw joint and
: : corna.com
1384 E Main Street • Newark, OH 43055 • 740.366.1447
www.laytonservices.com
19
20 Corna Kokosing : : From the Ground Up Cristo Rey Columbus High School
: : corna.com
Advertising Supplement to Columbus Business First | March 6, 2015
students could feel like they belonged.
As you walk through the school, you
might get a sense of a college campus
rather than a typical high school. The
new space accommodates a highlyadvanced learning environment that
includes expansive, 12-ft-ceiling classrooms (1,000 SF on average) with large
storage areas and prep stations for
multidisciplinary integrated learning
and labs. An open floor plan features
teaching studios that connect to smaller teaching suites, large, multipurpose,
commons areas for collaboration,
study alcoves and niches, multipurpose/fitness space, a dining room that
supports family-style dining, and gallery spaces to celebrate student work.
drilled through the wall to bolt it into
place.
me
rci
al
u
se
Throughout the project there were several mockups required for review and
approval by the state and federal government. These mockups included a
roofing mockup (to ensure the shingle
was a close enough match to the original slate shingles used on the building),
masonry restoration mockup (to ensure the building was cleaned and tuck
pointed correctly), window mockup (to
ensure that the new windows would
be period correct in appearance), and
be installed in such a manner that they
would align with the interior chair rail
as the original windows would have
been installed.
Jo
u
rn
als
-N
ot
fo
rc
om
Roughly six miles of chair rail were installed to take the building back to its
original state. Walls that were original
to the building required the original
chair rail profile, while newly constructed walls required a slightly altered version of the chair rail. This allows someone walking in the space to see which
walls were original and which walls
were added in this renovation. The historical process stipulated how much of
the original plaster had to be restored
and what areas could be furred out.
All interior doors were constructed to
mimic the original doors and frames in
the school, some of which were uncovered during demolition.
Bu
sin
ca
nC
ity
jacent rooms to achieve the necessary
room sizes. The third floor houses a
new chapel, and all the building systems, including HVAC and electrical, are
completely new.
Am
eri
Putting the Students First
Through the entire renovation and construction process, one goal remained
constant for the team– keep the stu-
dents first.
“The students were the most important
element of the project. While we knew
it was important to restore the historical elements and create a unique and
useful space, it was more important to
remember that this would be home to
hundreds of students,” said Negron.
The team needed to create a space that
students would want to be, and where
Blocks of space were built into the
classrooms that are shared by two
teachers. The blocks include a teaching
studio and teaching suite. The teaching suites allow for more self-directed
learning, collaboration, and small team
work. These spaces are intended to be
intellectually curious learning environments. All of the classrooms feature
state of the art technology with short
throw projectors running apple TV and
are also set up for traditional teaching
styles. Every student is equipped with
an I-pad for easy access to numerous
apps and text books to allow students
to be on the cutting edge of education.¬
Cristo Rey has found its home in Columbus. “Our students are now benefiting
from going to school in a beautifully
restored and technologically advanced
building that is second to none,” commented Foley. “It would not have been
possible without the outstanding work
of Corna-Kokosing.” Q
©
Other surviving historic elements including iron columns that once flanked
the stairs and corridor archways were
retained as well. The corridors were
returned to their original widths and
heights. Some classrooms remain
their original size, while others were
enlarged by combining them with ad-
es
s
“Working with the professionals at Corna Kokosing was a great experience.
We had a challenging renovation project on a Historic Register building that
needed to be accomplished under an
extremely tight schedule. They delivered the highest level work on time and
under budget,” said Foley.
The corridors are developed as common areas. These spaces are intended
to allow for student interaction and
collaboration in a more professional
looking setting. These exist on each of
the three student floors at the center of
the space. The building also includes
a non-denominational chapel that
serves as both a church and a meditation space for students.
Great works aren’t always
found in a museum.
&RQJUDWXODWLRQV
&ULVWR5H\DQG&RUQD.RNRVLQJ
RQDVXFFHVVIXOSURMHFW
1099 Sullivant Ave., Columbus, Ohio
43223, 614-221-5153,
www.midcityelectric.com
School Technology |