Project Case Study
Once complete, students and faculty relocated to the new school and the old school was demolished to create space for new parking lots and playgrounds. Although NKC Schools decided not to seek LEED certification for the new Maplewood Elementary, the building was designed with the same sustainability features.
Challenges during preconstruction included a geotechnical report revealing the ground at the location of the new building had been previously disturbed and would require remediation to allow for the building loads. The McCownGordon team was solution-oriented and developed a site package prior to the completion of the building design. The team removed the top layer of unsuitable solids, pre-loaded (surcharged) the building pad with up to 16 feet of fill material, then monitored the building pad until proper compaction in the subgrade had been achieved. During construction, challenges included working directly adjacent to an occupied campus. The construction entrance and exit was shared with the school buses and parents dropping off and picking up their children. The McCownGordon team worked with the schools administration to schedule start times, delivery times and potential disruptive construction activities around the schools schedule to ensure the safety of students, staff and families at all times.
The team also completed a new addition at the school’s existing high school that added new family and consumer science (FACS) classrooms, art rooms and additional academic classrooms. Safety and logistics were a top priority, as this portion of the project was completed in the active, operating high school.
