Cherokee

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

FEASIBILITY STUDY CHEROKEE

THURSDAY, APRIL 11TH 2019

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In December of 2018, the Scottsdale Unified School District entered an agreement with orcutt|winslow to undertake a feasibility study for the Cherokee Elementary project. The purpose of the study was to provide a data-driven recommendation informed by stakeholders on whether to renovate or replace the existing school.

In order to make a recommendation that meets school needs, community expectations, and the District’s parameters for a successful project, the team gathered data from community input, studies, and observations. A detailed description of process, outcomes and measurement tools—all of which informed our recommendation—are in the pages that follow.

Collection of Data Community Input:

Three primary channels were utilized for collection of data: Community, Students, and the Visioning Committee.

• Community Forums: Open to the public and intended for the community at large, four community forums have been conducted with one to be held after the decision of renovation vs. replacement is finalized.

• Students: Via STUGO meetings, student input was captured during two meetings. Their participation continues throughout the project with learning and exploratory activities.

• Visioning Committee: A selected group of 26 volunteers representing staff, parents, teachers and neighbors, meets every other Wednesday through June and at other times as needed. They are responsible for reaching consensus on project decisions, serving as the voice of the community, and sharing project information.

Meeting 1: Goals

Meeting 2: Facility Needs

Meeting 3: Charrette

Meeting 4: Recommendation Report

Future Meeting 5: Design Direction

Meeting 1: Project Introduction & Activity Directions

Meeting 2: Student Show-and-Tell

Studies & Observations:

The studies and observations are focused on aspects of the project, existing and future, that will influence its development and that can be observed and/or measured by the design team. In contrast with community input, this type of information is objective in nature, thus can be quantitatively measured in one way or another to easily document a professional recommendation. The following were performed by the team:

Existing Conditions Assessment

For this exercise, the engineer and design team visited the school to assess the building systems. Based on the condition of each building element, the team provided a recommendation for each building system.

Outcomes

Vignettes

Forty vignettes were created from the facility needs, charrette activities, site analysis, and existing conditions assessment.

The renovation and replacement concepts developed take into account positive attributes which should be accommodated in the design.

Site Analysis

The architectural team, with support of the civil engineer, performed a study of the site taking into account natural and cultural elements that will influence the design and performance of the project in both renovation and replacement.

Cost Model

CORE was selected as pre-construction services contractor on March 19th and began developing a cost model for both options. This model reflects the cost implications associated with each of the options based on the existing conditions of the building and site and the input from community of their expectations for the project.

Ranking Categories & Measurement

In order to analyze the options, elements identified as necessary to the project where included in a ranking matrix.

Scoring identified the best-performing option upon which to base our recommendation.

Options

Two options were developed based on the identified positive attributes and program for Cherokee. Both the renovation and replacement option represent the best solution for each scenario and were developed with direct input from the visioning committee.

Recommendation

Based on the information gathered, data collected, and community support, it is our recommendation that the District replace Cherokee Elementary School. A replacement school provides a better path to accomplishing project goals and is a wise investment of funds is comparable in cost to the funds required for renovation, possibly less expensive.

Because of the spirit with which Cherokee School approaches educating children, our design team is eager to provide a school that fits the evolving needs of students—a place where students can achiever their learning goals in a safe and healthy environment.

All information of the process, activities, outcomes, expertise input and design development can be found in the following pages of this book and appendixes.

PROJECT INTRO

Located at 8801 N 56th Street in Paradise Valley, Cherokee Elementary was built in 1973 on a 19-acre lot with access from 56th street to the west. Cherokee Elementary is a K-8 school and has a population of approximately 780 students and over 100 staff.

The Cherokee community embraces a holistic approach to educating children. From student’s academic achievements to personal and social growth and wellness, the mission and vision statements of Cherokee reflect a standard of excellence that supports the whole child.

Mission:

“To ensure high standards of excellence in education by meeting the individual needs of all students through the cooperation of staff, parents and community.”

Vision:

“Our school focuses on developing the whole child, which includes not only academic growth and success, but also the development of strong character and the teaching of invaluable life skills”

About the Community

Described as a public school with a private school feel, Cherokee Elementary experiences the richness of community involvement.

Cherokee offers almost two dozen of special programs, and is ranked the 13th Best Elementary School in the Nation with an A+ for AEF School of Excellence.

Currently, 25% of student population is in the gifted program and 22% divided between PANDA and ECC. Cherokee provides space for the accommodation of various learning needs.

Our design team quickly learned how close the Cherokee community is and how they work together with student wellness in mind all the time.

About the Building

The existing Cherokee campus is a five-building campus. Four of those buildings are per original project and have gone through from little to no renovation. The newest building was added on 1991, adding 6 more educational spaces to the school.

Because of the size of its population, every room is currently being used in the campus which provides no swing space during construction.

The original buildings are constructed of concrete with no window openings, the additions are of CMU with small glass-block areas for daylighting.

Many exterior spaces on campus, such as the gardens, are greatly appreciated and used by students and staff, often becoming learning tools.

Cheer

Typing

Computer

Homework

Gardening

CodaKid

Theatre

Tennis

Dance • Gymnastics

• Soccer

Student Government

• Band & Strings • Music

Art

Physical Education

DATA-DRIVEN RECOMMENDATION

The question this feasibility report seeks to answer:

“Which project improvement option would bring the most benefits and the best use of resources?”

Although the problem is easy to identify, the immersive process through which we offer a data-driven was by no means simple.

This was a thorough process of input, discovery, and learning. The team truly enjoyed the time and effort dedicated to the task; we believe the benefits will have a positive impact on forthcoming project development and design.

STRATEGIES & DELIVERABLES

The process through which we arrived at the replacement recommendation is multifaceted. Emphasis was placed on interaction and collection of input through various activities. The back and forth of input, activities, and possible solutions guaranteed the fluency of information, creating rich content that informed our recommendation.

Research

Orcutt | Winslow believes in developing a strong foundation of research in advance of beginning the design process. With regard to Cherokee Elementary School, we have not begun the design process with simply an assumption the design should be renovation with high innovation or a replacement school.

Assessments

The existing Cherokee Elementary School is constructed of concrete wall panels, one can easily assess the useful life of the building systems behind these walls such as roofing, mechanical, plumbing, and electrical systems, yet in this instance the reconfiguration of the walls themselves was taken into consideration for safety, daylight and space program.

Program

Programming begins with the typical classroom commonly set at 900 SF. This was the default for replacement, yet the existing classrooms range closer to 950 SF. The existing classrooms are configured with acute angles resulting in a less efficient classroom layout. It is also recognized the Cherokee Elementary Schools student draw is due to the numerous special programs commanding unique sizes in place of the common 900 SF classroom. Assembling a space program that respects the functions within is paramount to right sizing the facility whether it be renovate or replace.

User input

User Input is essential in understating how the program spaces best relate to each other for an optimum facility layout. Lower grade levels need to have careful consideration relative to both their parent / student pick up and drop off, travel distances to support spaces such as cafeteria, nurse and library. Older grade levels see a higher level of pull out space utilization, circulation paths and activity zones must have careful consideration.

Assemblage of Value

Metric-driven decision making is critical to determining the cost associated with renovation verses replacement. Consideration of program and construction duration will affect the ultimate budget. However, budget should not be the sole determining factor in whether to renovate or replace. Right-sizing the program to the constraints of the existing facility verses the ability to utilize appropriate geometry with a replacement are also factors. The nature of the acute angles generated in the hexagonal elements will generate a larger foot print or square footage. In replacement of an existing facility that is at or over capacity, there is a need for “swing space” to displace the students and teachers while construction occurs. In the instance of Cherokee Elementary School, we find the need for 1 to 2 additional phases of construction for renovation. This increases the construction cost due to longer duration of “general conditions” and reduced ability to obtain value by volume for the trades. As important as cost is disruption. The longer the duration of construction the greater disruption to students, teachers, neighbors, and community at large.

Community Input Groups (aka

Cherokee Design Team)

Options

The options are to renovate or replace through a data driven decision making process. Working with the Visioning Committee, Community and District to this end provides unique challenges that at the end turn into positive outcomes. For this purpose, a conceptual assemblage of both a renovation with high innovation and replacement option is essential to be able to apply the scoring rubric.

Financial Decisions/ Support

After going through this data driven inclusive and transparent process the recommendation, by natural consequence, has a majority of the communities support. With this foundation, the process will further develop to a community responsive schematic design..

The community input from different groups, brought multiple perspectives which inform the project. Below is a description of each group, their role, how and when they participated in the process, and the methods the team utilized for their involvement.

Community at Large:

The general public included anyone interested in the development of Cherokee: neighbors, parents, teachers, community and business members, etc. Their input was gathered during the community forums which were all open to the public. These meetings were announced via social media, mail correspondence, newspaper ads, and electronic mailing list. The participation varied from 14-65 people. Their scope of data outcome included memorable goals, facility needs, charrette, and consensus of recommendation.

Visioning Committee:

A selected and diverse group of individuals who volunteered to dedicate extra time to the development of the project made up of parents, staff members and neighbors. Their input was gathered (and will continue to be gathered thought the project) during the bi-weekly committee meeting. They are both representatives of their group and communicators of the project progress. The scope of their data outcome included program review, existing facilities assessment document review, charrette, input on the two concepts, overall process review and comment, and consensus of recommendation.

Students:

For student input, the team attended a couple of STUGO meetings. This approach caused less disruption to the daily activities and learning of students as STUGO is a selected group of students who are a voice for their peers. At STUGO meetings, their responsibility was solely to share their experience and their expectations of an ideal school. The desired outcomes were communicated through collages and the layout of the student’s perfect school.

District’s Cabinet:

For this project, the team had constant communication and input from members of the District’s Cabinet represented by Superintendent Dr. John Kriekard, Interim CFO Jeff Gadd, Assistant Superintendent Dr. Ibi Haghighat and Director of Building Services Dennis Roehler. Their input was gathered during a bi-weekly in person meeting and a weekly phone call conversation to communicate progress and next steps. Their responsibilities were to check fidelity between the project process and District’s goals, standards and expectations.

Governing Board:

The five-member governing board was constantly updated on the progress of this research. Several members participated in several community forums and Visioning Committee meetings. Their role was to hear the concerns and goals of the community, the team, and school while at the same time provided great input as members of the community. The board has the ultimate authority to accept the professional recommendation.

Design Team:

We believe that anybody who participated in this process is part of the design team, their input will have a tangible fingerprint on this project. For the purpose of project deliverables and construction, the design team is Orcutt | Winslow as the architect, Bowman Consulting for Civil Engineering, Dig Studio for Landscape, Landa and Associates for Structural and MSA engineering for MPE. Our responsibilities are the collection of data, implementation of outcomes, and constant communication with the entire community involved in the process for review, comment, and approval.

Process-Driven Design

This chart illustrates the process that Orcutt Winslow is currently facilitating in conjunction with the SUSD Administration, Cherokee Staff, Community Members and Visioning Committee to come to resolution on the choice to move forward in renovating the existing campus or providing a new facility.

Cherokee Community

Visioning

A B

Facility Needs

C

Preparation (Tools)

Document, Validate, & Apply

Charrette Resolution Application

D

E

PROCESS

Research & Assessment

For community input, we conducted community forums, Visioning Committee meetings, and attended STUGO meetings. The outcome of these activities yields memorable goals, positive attribute vignettes, and developed space program that influenced the design of the renovation and replacement options later found in this book. The positive attribute vignettes were generated from the facility needs and charrette activities.

For project evidence, the design team explored, observed, and assessed the existing buildings and construction systems through a site analysis and construction analysis. This research yielded positive attribute vignettes based on the status of the building and the natural conditions of the site and construction duration and costs models.

Now What?

The information we collected with the various activities and studies is what the team often refers to as “raw data”. The raw data has been sorted and analyzed in order to obtain outcomes that can be utilized to objectively and confidently answer the question: renovate or replace?

From Raw Data to Outcomes

The research activities during public forums and studies were designed to generate the necessary data to make an informed decision that takes into account all factors affecting the project.

Below is a description of each type of outcome, where it came from ,and how they correlate to each other. The outcomes listed below are the key factors in the ranking matrix. This is the core of this feasibility study and the foundation of the recommendation:

Memorable Goals

This was the most straightforward outcome from a community forum. In the activity the community participated to measure which goals were the most popular and the most important. Based on the descriptions given in the meeting, a list of four memorable goals were created. These goals are an umbrella to all positive attributes of the project and to program and design decisions throughout the process.

Positive Attribute Vignettes

Throughout the book there will be a total of 40 vignettes that represent aspects of the school that, according to our research and assessment, were wanted in the school project. They are a graphic depiction of an idea, a positive feature of the ideal school in the eyes of the Cherokee community. These attributes came from the facility needs and charrette activities and the existing condition analysis and site analysis. The source of each vignette is identified, in some cases being more than one.

On the construction aspect, there are two outcomes that will affect the decision for this project: cost and duration of construction. These were developed by the general contractor after cost models were produced based on recent and similar projects and expected escalation.

The other half of the outcomes from the research and assessment was the creation of two conceptual models, one for renovation with high innovation and one for replacement of

The goal for the team was, whichever option moves forward as a recommendation, it should provide for the ideals and goals identified by the community and the studies. Meaning, time and effort was invested so both options are realistic scenarios for a new Cherokee.

The final rubric is where all the outcomes come to play. This is where everything that was done and described in this book gets simplified so we can compare, side to side, the renovation and

In one side, we have the criteria to score, starting with the features we want Cherokee to have (memorable goals and positive attributes), follow with the construction criteria compared to one another and ending with the recommendation.

Cost is not the deciding factor

Throughout this process and in communications with the District and Community, one important message was always conveyed: Cost will not be the deciding factor. It is, however, influenced by it and will certainly have an effect on the recommendation.

Regarding construction length, the option with less time will be preferred. The longer the contractor is on site the greater the expense and distress brought about by construction, which is disruptive for students, staff and neighbors.

As for cost, there are thresholds to be respected. Yes, the less costly option is often preferred, but when it comes to renovation there is certain benchmark when a renovation, even if it costs less, it is not feasible. In our case, that threshold communicated by SUSD to be 60%. If renovation costs 60% or more than the total for the replacement and at the same time not achieving all the goals achieved by replacement. Reverting to replacement would be our recommendation. For Cherokee, cost was one of the many factors the team, and the community, used to compare the options to have an informed, data driven recommendation.

All the cost and construction model information created by CORE is provided in the appendix. The results are included in the scoring sheet.

WHERE IS MY CHARRETTE?

As you will see in the following chapters, the options presented for renovation and replacement are in the same working level and colors as the charrette activity layouts. The team was intentional in keeping the same language for a quick understanding.

However, these are two very different type of layouts. In the activity for the charrette we eliminated all constraints, such as site and environmental influences, existing building layout, construction phasing, etc., with the intention to not create a barrier for people’s creativity when thinking of their needs.

What this means, when people come without preconceived ideas of the current spaces and ways to make it work, the outcome will represent the most ideal scenario for the school, based on their needs and not in fixes of the current status. Then, the task for the design team is to incorporate all of these needs into a design that reacts to the constraints. In some cases, like in any other project, such constraints will prioritize some of the desired features and eliminate others. This is one of the most important factors to study between the two options to ensure we can realistically provide a successful project responding to the community’s voice.

This is why the options do not look exactly like any of the charrette layouts.

STEP 1

VISIONING First task: Envisioning the Ideal Cherokee

What do the spaces, inside and outside the building, need to provide for a successful educational experience?

What are the most important aspects in a school for the Cherokee community?

What do you want Cherokee Elementary to look and feel like?

To get the right answers the team needed to reach out to the experts in this field: the students, the teachers and the community in general, including parents, neighbors and District representatives. Everyone interested in the best Cherokee was welcomed and heard.

We reached students via STUGO. We reached the community via our first forum. The results are shown in the following pages and they paint the perfect image of what Cherokee means and represents.

STUGO

We attended two STUGO meetings to explain and request the students input.

The first meeting was an introduction and the students were given a brief explanation of the project and instruction for their collages. The second, held in the following month, allowed students to share the results of the activity and explained their work to the Orcutt | Winslow team.

Students are the main focus of our work. The work of the design team, the school staff and the District. Hearing directly from them, in their own words what they want to see in their school (and what they do not want to see), was not only a fun and informative experience, but it opened the door to future opportunities to make this project a learning experience.

From the requests we learned a lot on how students see their school. We learned that firemen poles are very popular. Certain cafeteria food, not so much.

The results of this activity were compiled and added to the memorable goals of the project.

COMMUNITY INPUT: GOALS

The visioning meetings held at Cherokee Elementary School. have served to determine the goals that the new school needs to achieve and include in the design. Input from administrators, staff, students and community members has served as the basis for such goals.

Community Surveys

What are your top three favorite things about Cherokee?

Survey Consensus

What are your top three things you would like to see improve?

What are some things that this design team should consider?

Assembly & Gathering/Community Space

Technology/Flexibility for Future

Safety & Wellness (Security & Line of Sight)

Site Circulation & Wayfinding

Kid-Centric Design

User Comfort (Lighting, Thermal, Plumbing, etc.)

Aesthetic Character

Classroom Usability

Engaging Academics

Pods/Collaboration Space

Courtyards/Outdoor Space

Weave Existing Culture Into Design

Sustainability - As a Learning Objective

Natural Light

Single Story, Existing Views

Community Feel/ Gardens, etc.

Blending Interior & Exterior Spaces

Teaching Collaboration

MEMORABLE GOALS

From combining all the data received a list of top priorities or “Memorable Goals” was developed

Safety & Wellness

• Design for student emotional and social well being

• Design for student safety [CPTED (crime prevention through environmental design) concepts such as layers, controlled points of entry, line of sight & transparency for supervision, etc]

• Intuitive site circulation & wayfinding

• Create an inviting & inclusive campus

Uniquely Cherokee

• Retain the existing community feel via gardens & blending interior & exterior spaces

• Generate a unique aesthetic character while weaving existing culture into the design

• Provide a community hub with usable courtyards and outdoor space

• Create a positive user experience

Student-centric learning

• Teacher & Student Collaboration Spaces (Pods)

• Learner-centric design concepts - collaboration, reflection, student agency [or choice], instructional and hands on spaces

• Design for flexibility - spaces, furniture, technology, other infrastructure

• Co-curricular, Specials & Athletics [accommodate current and future offerings, curricular integration]

High performance learning environment

• Create an energy efficient facility with a focus on sustainability as a learning objective.

• Provide a facility that has the needed infrastructure to support technology and future flexibility

• Focus on user comfort (healthy indoor environment, natural daylight & transparency, thermal, plumbing, etc.)

What will the New Cherokee Need?

STEP 2 FACILITY NEEDS

FACILITY NEEDS ACTIVITY

The first part of the design process was to allow for overall visioning and the establishment of memorable goals for the project. Next, the Facility Needs Activity focused on what the new facility will need in order to achieve the established goals. In order to identify those needs, the design team facilitated a world cafe activity. This activity broke the community forum participants into groups that rotated through three stations and had breakout discussions revolving each station’s topic; Support/ Specialty Spaces, Educational Spaces, and Site/Outdoor Spaces. After each group participated in each topic, the groups then came back together to review and validate the facility needs generated at each station. The below vignettes were discovered through the facility needs activity and were deemed of significant importance in the success of the new facility.

Support / Specialty Spaces

General Comments

• Currently the Police Sub-Station is on the same HVAC zone as the surrounding school. When the school is dormant during the summer, the air conditioning is not on within the Sub Station.

• There is a desire to see the Pre-K and PANDA (Pre-School for Assessed Needs in Developmental Areas) programs near the Kindergarten classrooms.

• Kindergarten parents would love to be able to remain further on campus during drop-off and pick-up. This is in conflict with the current perimeter fence and security protocols. An internal, safe courtyard would be well received by parents.

• Currently the library is an intervening space, meaning that it is used as a means to travel between other spaces. The new media center should be a destination, not a hallway.

• As the new design incorporates the edible gardens and FOSS Kits, irrigation should be provided.

• The administration needs to be located near the front of the school at the entry, to serve as a gatekeeper, but also to allow for confidential conversations to happen away from the student body. The administration building should also be close in proximity to the core spaces of the school where additional supervision would be ideal.

• The current Physical Education staff requested that the space provided for PE in the future facility be a stand alone space. In times of rain or excessive heat, PE is necessarily relocated indoors. This creates a potential conflict with already scheduled assemblies that are using shared space.

• Cochise, Cheyenne and Copper Ridge were all brought up as case study examples of courtyard, garden and assembly spaces that are well liked.

• The Socialization/Communication/ Academics (SCA) and Learning Resource Center/Interventionist spaces desire adjacency to their respective grades, but require strong acoustical separation.

illustrates relationships within program. This discussed is not

Summary

The forum identified three main groups; Pullouts, Core and Administration. Pullouts represent areas that support classroom learning and have smaller groups of students at a time during normal class time. Core areas like the cafeteria, represent areas where an entire class travels together. The first priority in adjacencies is to arrange the pullouts so that they are closest to the classroom and educational spaces. This facilitates an ease in transitioning students between these spaces quickly and safely. The core spaces hold the second priority of adjacency to the education spaces. In addition, a large discussion within the forum focused on providing separate spaces for some of the larger assembly spaces that currently are used in a multi-purpose fashion. For example, there was a desire to not have a “cafetorinasium” space used for cafeteria, auditorium and gymnasium.

Adjacency Matrix

The diagram below illustrates the desired relationships between specific program spaces within the Cherokee Elementary program. This matrix reflects only the content discussed during the community forum and is not meant to be a complete guide to adjacencies.

Socialization/Communication/Academics (SCA)

Learning Resource Center/Interventionist

Speech and Language Pathologist

Gifted

English Immersion Studies

Art

Makerspace

Music

Band

Computer Labs

Media Center

Reception/Administration

Nurse

APT Resource Room

Teaching Aids Touchdown Space

Counselor

Psychologist

Social Worker

Paradise Valley Police Sub-Station

Multi-Purpose/Student Dining

Stage

Kitchen

Physical Education (PE)

Restrooms/Water Fountains

Custodial

Storage

Grade K-2 Classrooms

Grade 3-5 Classrooms

Assembly Courtyard/Amphitheater

DESIRED ADJACENCY UNDESIRED ADJACENCY NEUTRAL

between Cherokee reflects only community complete guide

Educational Spaces

General Comment

• There was a desire by the community that the design team go door to door to invite neighbor participation in the forums.

• In addition, the two forums to date have been in the evening, and there was a request to see if there could be an alternative time slot to accommodate alternative schedules for community members to participate.

• The existing adjacencies and layout, specifically the location of the cafeteria in relation to the parking lot is a breach in a safe and secure release to parent pick-up.

Summary

• Currently the door openings to the exterior and their hardware is a large security issue. The teachers currently have to lock classroom doors from the outside in an event of a lockdown, and some classrooms have upwards of 3 doors that require locking.

• There is no adjacency currently between exterior play and restroom access. This adjacency is desired.

• Adequate access to storage near the classrooms is desired.

• Gardens should be thought of as outdoor teaching stations.

• For immersion purposes the grade K-2 special education programs such as the SCA and Learning Resource Center should be adjacent to grade K-2 classrooms, and in turn, the grade 3-5 programs near the grade 3-5 classrooms.

• The current layout of spaces, in respect to the age range of the students, is not desirable. Preference would be such that lower grades are grouped together and the same for upper grades. In addition, proximity to age appropriate outdoor play areas is also important.

The forum expressed some overall preferences in separating age groups of students on campus. It is highly desirable that the Pre-K, 1st grade and 2nd grade stay adjacent to each other, and 3rd grade, 4th grade and 5th grade do the same. Best case scenario is that these two major groups of students remain a bit further away from each other than they are currently. Another major desire is that the special education and pullout programs that correspond with the K-2 and 3-5 be placed in close proximity to their respective age cluster. Lastly, there is a preference that any gardens/outdoor learning classrooms would be adjacent and incorporated into the classroom spaces, versus a destination that is separate.

Adjacency matrix

The diagram below illustrates the desired relationships between specific program spaces within the Cherokee Elementary program. This matrix reflects only the content discussed during the community forum and is not mean to be a complete guide to adjacencies.

Early Childhood Classrooms (3s & 4s) PANDA

Pre-School Entry / Check-In Vestibule

Grades K-2 Classrooms

Grades 3-5 Classrooms

Breakout Spaces

Teacher Work/Prep Rooms

Restrooms / Drinking Fountains

Custodial

Storage

K-2 Socialization/Communication/Academics (SCA) K-2 Learning Resource Center/Interventionist

3-5 Socialization/Communication/Academics (SCA) 3-5 Learning Resource Center/Interventionist

Psychologist

Social Worker

Multi-Purpose/Student Dining

Gardens & Outdoor Learning/Classrooms

Early Childhood / PANDA Playgrounds

Grades K-2 Playgrounds

Grades 3-5 Playgrounds

DESIRED ADJACENCY

UNDESIRED ADJACENCY NEUTRAL

between Cherokee reflects only community complete guide

Site / Outdoor Spaces

General Comment

• The current location of the playgrounds does not have a desirable adjacency to the parent parking and drop-off.

• Early Learning, Pre-K and PANDA need to be located close to parent parking. In preschool, parents are required to park, escort and sign-in/out their students.

• There are three buses currently, but there is a potential need for more. Incorporation of a special education bus drop-off area is desired. The overall queueing length could be adjusted accordingly.

• Parking for early learning students would be best to be adjacent to the respective playgrounds.

• Gridiron Football is a vendor that uses the fields. Golf, Tennis and SportBall are present on campus. Gymnastics currently uses the cafeteria.

Summary

• It is undesirable to have the garbage trucks and food truck deliveries adjacent to the parent drop-off. Currently the service entry is located between the parent drop-off at the front of the school and the early learning parent drop-off at the rear of the school.

• If possible, staff would prefer separate parking.

• The queueing lane for parent drop-off is substantially undersized currently, resulting in off-street congestion, sometimes all the way north to Doubletree Ranch Rd.

• Overall, the desire is to keep the general arrangement of the site the same, buildings toward 56th street (front) and fields in the back.

• Quick calculations estimate a need for 200+ parking spaces. (Currently 104 staff and 100 Early Childhood, without counting visitor/ miscellaneous)

• Historically, surrounding homeowners have had private, gated entry onto the campus, and those community members expressed a desire to keep those gates. This is a perk that they have enjoyed having for many years. Staff brought up safety concerns with having that many unregulated entries to the school campus. This will need to be discussed further.

• Playgrounds should be located in close proximity to their respective associated age range.

Similar to the request that educational spaces be separated by age cluster, the outdoor spaces will require a similar arrangement. Best-case scenario is that the age appropriate playgrounds be adjacent to their respective classroom clusters. Safety, from a practical standpoint, is a major factor in the site layout. Not only should there be layers of security as you move further onto campus, but the general safety of pedestrians from vehicular traffic patterns need to be carefully explored. Separation of early childhood parking and drop-off from the rest of the circulation can also be explored.

Adjacency matrix

The below is a diagram that illustrates graphically the desired relationships between specific program spaces within the Cherokee Elementary program. This matrix reflects only the content discussed during the community forum and is not mean to be a complete guide to adjacencies.

Pedestrian Path of Travel

Parent Drop-Off

Bus Drop-Off

Special Education Bus Drop-Off

Staff Parking

Visitor Parking

Early Childhood Parking

Early Childhood / PANDA Playgrounds

Grades K-2 Playgrounds

Grades 3-5 Playgrounds

Hard Surface Play (Courts)

Soft Surface Play (Fields)

Assembly Courtyard/Amphitheater

Gardens & Outdoor Learning/Classrooms

Service Entry/Loading Zone

Reception/Administration

Multi-Purpose/Student Dining

Physical Education (PE)

Pre-School Entry/Check-In Vestibule

Early Childhood Classrooms (3s & 4s)

PANDA

Grades K-2 Classrooms

Grades 3-5 Classrooms

DESIRED ADJACENCY

UNDESIRED ADJACENCY NEUTRAL

STEP 3

SITE ANALYSIS

What is Unique About Cherokee’s Site?

Every site is unique and brings its own set of influences on how we inhabit it. Architectural site analysis is the process of investigating a specific location’s physical features, climate, and social and contextual influences, amongst many other patterns and characteristics. All of these are researched, as they will influence the design team’s process and decision-making.

The team underwent a thorough analysis of the existing Cherokee Elementary site. The analysis helped to isolate concepts or attributes that should be incorporated into the architectural solution. In many ways the information discovered in this analysis provides a solid foundation for the development of a design for the new Cherokee Elementary School. A full accounting of the site analysis data can be found in the Appendix.

STEP 4 EXISTING CONDITIONS ASSESSMENT

What is Cherokee’s Useful Life?

Evaluate the existing physical condition and useful life of the site, building and its systems.

As part of the design process for the SUSD Cherokee Elementary project, an existing conditions assessment was performed in order to provide the District and the community information of the current status of the building elements and systems in the campus and how they will perform if the school was renovated.

The Design team visited the site of the school and referred to construction documents to do an analysis of the existing conditions of the building with the purpose of rating their current state and to provide a recommendation on whether the component needs replacement, renovation, or can remain as existing.

The results of each of the disciplines (civil, landscape, structural, architectural, plumbing, mechanical and electrical) are shown as rating checklist. For the full document including a deeper analysis of the results and descriptions go to the Appendix.

Considerations

In our approach, we studied the building systems and elements under six different categories of considerations:

Existing Conditions Ratings:

Following the checklist matrix, items were rated depending on if existing needs to be replaced completely, renovated or if it can remain.

Memorable Goals:

Are memorable goals be able to be provided, supported?

Example: more daylighting, in existing concrete walls it will be more difficult to provide daylighting to building, what are the limitations and is it practical from a means and methods standpoint. In doing these changes is the lateral stability or any other code requirement compromised.

Code Compliance:

Considerations are made based on Paradise Valley Current Codes 2015 + amendments and accessibility UNO Environmental/Energy benchmarks

District Standards:

What is the system of choice for SUSD and the system would be applicable to both renovate or new build? An example, if today the buildings are conditioned via rooftop units and the system of choice is a two-pipe water source heat pump with a central plant, articulate any challenges in converting the existing facility to a two-pipe system.

Environmental/Energy benchmarks:

Comparison of achievability of systems efficiency is a factor for consideration. Target EUI of 22 Kbtu/SF/Yr. Corresponding mechanical performance 20% better than reference design (ASHRAE 90.1 2013), lighting target LPD <0.5, interior water reduction 25% less than baseline code.

Salvage items:

Are there any items in your discipline that could be re-used or salvaged?

CHECKLISTS

STEP 5 CHARRETTES

Cherokee Reimagined

Charrette Activity

The community’s favorite activity, the charrette allowed everyone to roll up their sleeves and explore site arrangements that interested them. The purpose of this activity was to engage everyone in an exercise that would bring forth major preferences in site arrangement, building adjacencies, and overall relationships that would help to give the design team a good set of positive and desirable attributes to incorporate.

Within small groups of 6-10, the objective of this activity was to discuss as a group and come to consensus on what types of arrangements of spaces best allowed the new Cherokee to accomplish the goals established to date. With the expertise/ input of the group, each prepared a best case scenario layout of the spaces provided, and shared with the larger group.

This exercise was not meant as a building design, or even building layout, but as an idealistic relationship study only. This allowed the best ideas to then be consolidated and represented with vignettes for further use.

Option 1: Visioning Committee

Option 2: Visioning Committee

The Charrette concepts generated and displayed above are from both a Visioning Committee meeting on January 23, 2019, and a Community Forum on January 28,2019. Additional concepts will be created during alternative times on March 1, 2019.

Option 5: Community Forum

Option 6: Community Forum

Option 7: Community Forum

Option 8: Community Forum

Option 9: Susd Facilities Staff

Option 10: Alternative Community Forum

STEP 6 VIGNETTES

Representations of Positive Cherokee Attributes

A vignette, in respect to this process, is a depiction of a positive and desirable design attribute. This comes in the form of a small icon or diagram that clearly explains or represents the attribute. It is a visual way to express the idea, which helps to facilitate its incorporation into the design process.

The collection of these vignettes come from a variety of sources and are meant to be the visual form of the input gained from the students, staff, the district, parents and the community. The Site Analysis, Existing Conditions Assessment, Facility Needs Activity, and the Charrette all helped to generate the collection of the 40 vignettes represented here.

These vignettes provide a design checklist that now represent all of the important ideas that came from the community activities and input gained thus far. This can now be used as an evaluation tool, where each concept can then be evaluated based on how many positive and desirable attributes it is able to achieve. Within the context of the feasibility study, these vignettes allow a side by side comparison between the conceptual design solution for replacing the school or renovating the school.

Acoustical Separation

The physical education space adjacent to classroom space is undesirable and requires a strong acoustical separation from quiet learning spaces.

Convenient Pullout Spaces

Areas such as the Socialization/Communication/ Academics And Learning Resource Center should be placed as close as possible to the classrooms served. SCA & LRC need strong acoustic separation from quiet learning spaces.

Security

Administration should positioned as a gate-keeper and also be in close proximity to core spaces that require additional supervision.

Media Center as Destination

Currently the media center experiences undesirable circulation through it due to its location. The media center should be a destination versus a hallway.

SCA LRC

Bio Breaks

It is imperative that restrooms are located conveniently and close in proximity to all of the playgrounds, fields, and courts.

Age Clusters - Play

It is desirable that the playgrounds be located next to their respective age clusters. Separation of play between age clusters is important for safety and to provide age-appropriate play opportunities.

Minimized Points of Access

Minimizing points of access into the campus greatly increases the level of control and the ability to monitor who is on campus at any time. This is a security best practice.

P.E. and Courts / Fields

Based on their simultaneous use, the physical education space within the school should be located in very close proximity to the outdoor spaces that will be utilized for physical education.

Proximity / Accessibility

The younger population of the school and students with special requirements should be located in close proximity to a parking lot for greatest accessibility.

Passive Solar Design

Orienting the building on the east/ west access allows spaces to be lit with even and natural day lighting while minimizing solar exposure and heat gain. Provide direct visual connection to the outdoors.

Large Assembly

The new facility should provide a space that is adequate for an all-school assembly. The capacity of this space needs to reflect the 770± students and 100± additional faculty and parents.

Adequate Vehicular Queueing

The campus site design needs to respond to the shift of student arrival from bus to vehicular traffic. Provide an area for parent drop-off that is rightsized.

Parking Near Fields

The current facility has parking that is located in close proximity to the fields. This is a positive and well liked feature that if able to be incorporated into the design, should be.

Age Clusters-Learning

It is desirable that the campus be organized such that the grades are clustered by age. 5th grader needs are significantly different than Kindergarten’s needs.

Curb Appeal

Currently the building sits far from the street and the entry is not clear. The new facility should create an appropriate presence while being respectful to the surrounding context.

Discreet Service Access

While appropriate access to service areas such as loading and delivery areas and dumpsters are needed, they should not conflict with daily site circulation.

Separate Staff Parking

Staff expressed that it would be well received if the new campus design provided separate staff parking. This can aid in congestion, no longer conflicting with visitor/parent drop-off.

Engaging Outdoor Spaces

Creating outdoor spaces with classrooms, create engaging opportunities between students, breaking the norm that classrooms are only contained within interior spaces.

Pre-K & PANDA Adjacency

The tuition-based portion of the campus needs to be consolidated and self contained. Pre-School, Pre-K and PANDA need to be located adjacent to each other.

Line of Sight

For supervisory and security reasons, providing line of sight to the greatest extent possible is best practice. A building and campus design that allows for this is ideal.

Pods

One of the most talked about qualities that needs to be retained from the existing Cherokee campus is the pod breakout spaces. This is incredibly functional space that is utilized extensively

Efficient Site Usage

With 19 acres to utilize, the site design should provide ample open space and make good use of its acreage. Most likely a consolidated campus footprint will yield more efficiencies

Learning Space Performance

There are certain minimum standards that are expected in todays learning environments. The new facility should provide things like ample headroom, daylight and thermal comfort.

Ease-of-Wayfinding

Beyond good signage, the new campus should be intuitive and easy to navigate. This should happen both for vehicular traffic, but also the pedestrian experience.

Gardens

Creating exterior environments allow for students to be engaged in multiple ways and forms. Creates pleasing exterior space for students, teachers and parents.

Community Hub

Designing the school as a hub for the community enriches the relationship between students, teachers, families and community.

Access to Core Spaces

All learning spaces on the campus need to be in reasonably close proximity to core spaces. This allows for ease of circulation for all students and staff.

Incorporate Views

Incorporating/ framing views within spaces allow for the campus to have a connection to nature. This has shown repeated benefits to academic performance.

1 2 3

Spark of Joy

The word “playful” was brought up multiple times as a quality that an elementary design needs to have. The design should create a campus that is fun and vibrant but also inspires.

Parent Drop-Off Near Fields

Students start their morning on the fields and enter campus as the school day starts. Placing the drop-off near the fields is the most convenient location.

Ease of Construction Phasing

Many variables affect construction schedules, especially on an active campus. The new design should try to make the sequencing and phasing of construction as simple as possible.

Security Access and Control

RFID technology allows for flexibility in access control, a primary player in the discussion of security strategies. A customized solution that meets district standards should be provided.

Uniquely Cherokee

There are distinct building elements that add positively to Cherokee’s culture and community. The new campus should create the same level of community pride.

Neighborhood Context

Cherokee Elementary has a unique neighborhood context. The design of the school should reflect that context, and add positively to the surrounding community.

Energy Efficient

An efficient building system contributes to overall ease of maintenance and reduces operations costs. At the same time, it reduces the impact on the environment.

Reuse/ Salvage

Re-using and salvaging as many building elements and incorporating anything useful into a new design component reduces the impact to environment.

Literary Landmark

Cherokee Elementary inspired Barbara Park’s Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus. The new school needs to incorporate some way of celebrating the recognition it has as a registered literary landmark.

Outdoor Learning

Especially on an elementary campus, outdoor learning provides for so many opportunities for curriculum outside of the classroom. In an area known for its climate, the design should provide opportunities for outdoor learning.

Retain Existing Trees

The site currently has a variety of trees, some in better shape than others. It is definitely the preference of all that we retain as many of the trees that are healthy as possible.

Utility Organization

The site analysis done by the engineering team discovered that the existing layout of utilities on site is complex and will need to be simplified to the greatest

RENOVATE OR REPLACE?

Options

Two options were developed to explore the capabilities of each to react to all evaluation criteria established. Each option investigated respectively, the merits of either renovating the current facility or replacing it. The two options are quite different in their arrangement of space and use of the site. Each option reacts to a different set of constraints and can be compared based on their ability to overcome those constraints.

Renovation

The renovation concept started with an exploration of existing qualities that should be retained. In addition, a study of the purpose and intent of the original hexagonal design was done to understand the merits of using the same strategy moving forward.

This option retains all of the original hexagonal buildings and expands on the same layout strategy. A new building provides a large multipurpose cafeteria and assembly space with kitchen. The multi-purpose space has a stage with vocal music and band close by. Physical education is also included in this new building, maintaining its proximity to the courts and fields. Much of the existing parking and bus drop-off infrastructure would be repaired in place, with the exception of a more thorough renovation and expansion of the rear parking and parent drop-off area.

The renovation, using modern security design principles, shifts from the existing exterior loaded circulation strategy to a more controllable, internally loaded circulation strategy with most classrooms having just one door into an internal space or hallway. The classroom buildings are arranged such that the Pre-K/PANDA and Kindergarten classes are as close as possible to the drop-off and parent parking, while the oldest of the grades extend furthest south into the campus. There are separate areas for recess, each located in proximity to the age cluster they serve. Internally, each age cluster respectively has their own central collaboration pod. The media center would be located where the current cafeteria is, to take advantage of the existing roof height. Administration would remain where it is currently, and still serve as the front door to the school.

Replacement

The replacement concept started with an exploration into how to use modern learning facility design practices while also providing the same positive qualities present in the existing campus.

This concept consists of a campus of buildings that provide a series of learning pods, organized about a cluster of accessible core functions, as the modern interpretation of the collaboration pods currently at Cherokee Elementary. These buildings provide the same small scale interaction that the existing campus provides. The site layout is rearranged, maximizing off-street drop-off lane queuing and retaining proximity to the main entry of the school and to outdoor play areas. Parent drop-off and visitor parking is aligned with the “front door” of the school.

The learning pods encourage secure and flexible learning environments outside of the classroom and provide the opportunity for engaging outdoor use. There are separate areas for recess, each located in proximity to the age cluster they serve. All campus classroom buildings are arranged to be as close to the core buildings as possible to minimize transition time between spaces. The core functions on campus are located in the front of the campus, allowing easy access from the public. Adjacent to the entry courtyard is both the administration and multi-purpose building. Within the multi-purpose building is a large cafeteria and assembly space with kitchen. The multi-purpose space has a stage with vocal music and band close by. Physical Education is located in the same building, with close proximity to the courts and fields. Media, art and other core functions are within the Administration building.

ANALYSIS OF OPTIONS

In addition to retrospective analysis, evaluation of the options happened throughout the iterative design process to develop them both. Each option started with multiple schemes born out of the charrette activity. Through collaboration with the staff, parents and community, slowly the highest performing layout surfaced for both. With each option developed, it became apparent which attributes would be achievable by which option. It became logical to use the list of Memorable Goals and Vignettes to see how each option performed within that set of criteria. These listed criteria became part of a larger rubric, and each option was evaluated by the design team and the visioning committee to discover which option would best accomplish the established project goals.

RENOVATION ANALYSIS

Score Recap

The renovation concept was able to achieve ten out of fifteen memorable goals and twenty-eight out of the forty vignettes. There were five goals that were deemed unachievable, and those goals were spread among all four categories.

Option Evaluation

In lieu of dedicating narratives to each individual line item, a summary that shows the major strengths and weaknesses was used to visually explain the performance of each option. For the purpose of side by side visual comparison, six major overarching important concepts capture over three-quarters of the criteria under their respective umbrellas. These concepts are Security, Circulation & Wayfinding, Uniquely Cherokee, Pods, Flexibility and Learning Space Performance. The renovation option was rated such that it only achieved two of these six overarching concepts.

Security

The renovation struggles in a couple of security attributes. Particularly, transparency for supervision and line of sight are a challenge within the existing campus. Due to the existing concrete wall panels, large and costly modifications to the building envelope would make it much harder to achieve the level of glazing and transparency desired. In addition, line of sight within the current layout of the campus has been identified as a challenge. The buildings are obviously not able to be rearranged in the renovation option, so while this issue could be resolved with a robust security camera system and other strategies, this issue will remain to some degree present.

Circulation & Wayfinding

The arrangement of the site is not intuitive for a firsttime visitor. The administrative building is not necessarily prominent on approach and signage for vehicular traffic would have to be extremely well planned in order to counteract the circuitous route that the parents will need to follow to park and enter, or drop off their children. Not only from an ease of circulation standpoint, the clear span that is currently between the northern most building and the property line is much less than desirable for providing safe clearance for both vehicular and pedestrian traffic.

Uniquely Cherokee

The renovation option is easily able to achieve a campus that is uniquely Cherokee. Because so much of the original building and campus layout would be reused, it would retain most of the existing characteristics and qualities currently present.

Pods

The internal design of the classroom buildings keeps collaboration pods in the central area of each hexagon. These pods are easier to access and provide all the space needed to support all of the same activities currently happening in the pods.

Flexibility

The original design of the campus was extremely efficient and logical, and reacted well to its era. The hexagons prove to be less flexible as they adapt to today’s educational facility best practices, and do not lend themselves to much adaptation beyond what can be achieved within the language and arrangement of hexagons. For example, a typical rectangular building has many ways that it can be divided into functional spaces. On the other hand, a hexagon works best when divided by three or six, but becomes much more complicated if any further manipulation is required. It is on this simple analysis that the hexagons do not score as inherently flexible for the long-term future use of the building.

Learning Space Performance

Many qualities combine to create what is now accepted as a high functioning learning space. Things like thermal comfort, natural daylight, and ample headroom create the baseline of creature comforts that need to be provided so that students can concentrate on academic performance. The building should facilitate learning, not create any friction or challenges that students then need to overcome. There are a few of these, that the renovation option can still achieve, but would drastically increase the cost of construction. Both internal head height throughout the campus buildings and natural daylight are significantly more difficult for the renovation option to achieve. It is on that merit, that the renovation option does not satisfy this portion of the criteria.

REPLACEMENT ANALYSIS

Score Recap

The replacement concept scored very well. It was able to achieve all fifteen of the memorable goals and thirty-eight of the forty vignettes

Option Evaluation

In lieu of dedicating narratives to each individual line item, a summary that shows the major strengths and weaknesses was used to visually explain the performance of each option. For the purpose of side by side visual comparison, six major overarching important concepts capture over three-quarters of the criteria under their respective umbrellas. These concepts are Security, Circulation & Wayfinding, Uniquely Cherokee, Pods, Flexibility and Learning Space Performance. The replacement option was able to excel in all six of the overarching concepts.

Security

The replacement option is able to capitalize on its ability to reorganize and restructure the layout of the campus with many things in mind. One beneficiary of this reinvention is the concept of modern security and its integration into the site design with CPTED(Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design) principles. This site and building layout lends itself to incorporating a variety of influential security concepts like layered security, controlled and minimized points of entry, clear line of sight and strategic transparency for supervision.

Circulation & Wayfinding

All parking is consolidated into one location and is arranged such that the administration or front door of the school is clear and present for first-time visitors. The circulation of the site is simple and straight forward. In addition, the rectangular arrangement both on a building level and a campus level provides the bones for an easy to navigate campus.

Uniquely Cherokee

The replacement option affords the inclusion of most all of the characteristics of the existing campus that create the vibe that is uniquely Cherokee. The small and large scale outdoor spaces and gardens in the original campus courtyards are something the replacement classroom buildings and campus courtyards provide. The replacement has the ability to reinvent its aesthetics or curb appeal, while respecting the previous character.

Pods

The internal design of each classroom building provides a collaborative pod in the center of each age cluster. In addition, plans to incorporate more programmed outdoor learning spaces directly adjacent to these pods can provide the modern version of the much desired collaboration spaces, but located in a bright and vibrant internal courtyard.

Flexibility

The replacement campus provides flexibility on multiple levels. From a site perspective, potential future additions or modifications will be able to be accommodated for in a more conventional and cost effective manner. Internally, the departure from trapezoidal or hexagonal shapes provides an inherent level of flexibility as programs and curriculum change over time. The new configuration of classroom spaces allows for many different types of learning styles to flourish, which is why the replacement option displays the flexibility that Cherokee will need in the future.

Learning Space Performance

Because the classrooms spaces are being designed from scratch, there are no inadequate ceiling heights to deal with, nor is there a restriction on the location or size of any form of transparency as the space is designed to provide natural daylight, or transparency for supervision. A building replacement will be able to provide all of the best practices that contribute positively to academic outcomes.

CONSTRUCTION COST MODEL

Process

In studying the cost options for both the Replacement and Renovation scenarios, CORE Construction has compared historical cost data from both Replacement and Renovation projects. When utilizing cost data from historical construction cost, the data has to take into account when the construction project occurred as the construction economics cost trends have been increasing fairly linearly (1.25% per Quarter) since the great recession of 2009. The cost data on each project analyzed gets escalated to “Today’s” dollars and the data is considered.

Replacement

For the Replacement projects the two most applicable projects to Cherokee for cost data would be the Hopi and Pima Elementary projects that were just recently completed by CORE Construction at the beginning of 2019. When considering the construction start dates for the completed projects with respect to Cherokee’s anticipated start date a 12.77% escalation factor is added thus making the data current. Data from the individual scope items and the total construction cost are both considered to make a conceptual projection for the Replacement option.

Outcome

Renovation

For the Renovation projects CORE has pulled cost data from various Elementary school Renovation projects along with knowledge of product & material specifications from the Hopi & Pima projects to make conceptual cost projections. This study also incorporates the escalation of cost data to “Today’s” dollars to ensure the data is applicable.

At this point in time the Renovation project will cost 1% to 2% more than the Replacement project mostly due to the duration of construction and the inefficiencies of the project phasing.

CONSTRUCTION DURATION & DISRUPTION

Renovation Phasing

Construction and phasing of the renovation option is scheduled to be accomplished in four to five phases. These listed steps further break down those major phases of construction into a more in-depth explanation of the sequencing that would be best given construction will be coinciding with an active campus:

Contractor mobilizes and prepares site for safe construction activities

Aligned with a summer break, required earthwork and infrastructure as well as the renovation of the primary core building that houses the administration, media and other core classrooms

A DConstruction of the core building that houses the kitchen, multipurpose cafeteria, vocal music, band, stage and physical education

Renovation of the Pre-K, PANDA and Kindergarten building

Renovation of the 1st Grade, 2nd and 3rd Grade building

ERenovation of the 4th and 5th Grade building

Demolition of the remaining building and final site work, landscaping and parking*

*Any building or decorative items identified to be salvaged for the new facility, to be donated, or even potentially diverted from a landfill will be something that becomes more clear as the design is finalized. These items would be addressed appropriately within the demolition planning process.

Renovation Phasing

Construction and phasing of the renovation option is scheduled to be accomplished in four to five phases. These listed steps further break down those major phases of construction into a more in-depth explanation of the sequencing that would be best given construction will be coinciding with an active campus:

Contractor mobilizes and prepares site for safe construction activities

BDemolition of the southern two hexagonal pods*

AEConstruction of the three primary classroom buildings; Kindergarten and 1st Grade, 2nd and 3rd Grade, and 4th and 5th grade.

CConstruction of the two core buildings and the Pre-K and PANDA building

Demolition of the remaining buildings*

Final site work, landscaping and parking

*Any building or decorative items identified to be salvaged for the new facility, to be donated, or even potentially diverted from a landfill will be something that becomes more clear as the design is finalized. These items would be addressed appropriately within the demolition planning process.

RESULTS + RECOMMENDATION

The process of investigating the feasibility of renovation with high innovation or replacement of the existing Cherokee Elementary had a focus on transparency, and building community and stakeholder consensus. Great care was given to gain as much feedback as possible from the community, so that the future Cherokee Elementary will be something that everyone supports. To achieve the consensus needed, the approach leaned heavily on a data driven process that helped to quantify, qualitative differences between the two possible strategies. It is with the results from this process, that the Staff, Visioning Committee and Community at large have been able to evaluate and come to a decision on how they recommend the district move forward.

The community has come to consensus on the following:

• A new facility will provide a fresh start with improved flexibility for the future. While the hexagonal shapes are unique, they create more issues than they resolve. From a high performance learning environment perspective, a replacement will outperform a renovation of this campus.

• A renovation would require compromise on important considerations, yet would provide no cost savings to the district as a trade-off.

• Many qualities that give Cherokee its unique character, are also the qualities that make it challenging from a security and wayfinding perspective. A replacement will address these concerns while still allowing for recreation of those unique qualities within a design that accounts for the needs of today’s modern campus.

• The replacement of Cherokee will minimize construction duration and disruption compared to the sequencing that would be required for the renovation.

There is no benefit to renovating the existing campus that is not equally if not better afforded in the replacement of Cherokee. It is with that rationale, that the community recommends the replacement of the existing Cherokee Elementary School.

CONCLUSION

There were no pre-conceived notions when we started the research process on whether to renovate or replace. Instead, the team used this as an opportunity of exploration and learning.

The District, the school, the community and the design team joined forces as we navigated through all the different factors that affected the decision and the project. We engaged into conversations, discovery exercises, research of the facts. In every instance we listened, we heard different ideas and opinions, because we were aware that communication and learning were going to be the key to a successful decision and therefore, a successful project.

This process will become the foundation to a strong design that will represent the values of the Cherokee community: Our uniqueness, our strength, our passion for student success and wholesome developing and more importantly, a place where we can create and grow our connection to each other for the benefit and growth of our kids and future citizens.

CONSTRUCTION DATA

COMMUNITY GOALS

EXISTING CONDITIONS ASSESSMENT

FACILITY NEEDS MATRICES

STUGO COLLAGES

SITE ANALYSIS CHARTS

SITE ANALYSIS STILLS

SPACE PROGRAM