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Phase 1 of a 325,000 square foot project was recently completed in the winter of 2010. The Arts Center consists of a state-of-the-art auditorium seating 850, and wings of classrooms for the music and fine arts programs. The 51,000 square foot building also houses the locker rooms for the new athletic fields including a synthetic turf field, for the Kingswood middle and high schools.
The project has been designed and constructed with forward-looking technology and energy conservation in mind. It is eligible for "CHPS" (Collaborative for High Performance Schools) certification. The building and entire campus will be heated and cooled geothermally, utilizing 300 bore holes located under the athletic fields. Natural day lighting was designed throughout along with electrical lighting dimmed according to the natural light at any particular time. Innovative waste water technologies incorporated rain water collection and storage systems to irrigate fields and supply low flow toilets and urinals. To maximize energy efficiency, energy recovery units and an extremely tight building were employed. Equally important was the health of the students, so co detectors monitoring air quality that adjust ventilation to meet the actual student count in a room were included and function extremely efficient for such a large space.
With the addition of the multipurpose building, a true campus plan has evolved which will have an emphasis on pedestrian travel and access.
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