DCC architects Designs New 2-Story Elementary School with Student Performance in Mind

March 2007 — Las Vegas, NV – The Clark County School District (CCSD) recently approved DCC architects’ design for the replacement building of Tom Williams Elementary School. The innovative design solves the many challenges facing the existing 50 year-old educational facility. DCC architects developed a LEED equivalent, 2-story building to accommodate 21% more students into a site 40% smaller than typical size used in the 1998 Bond program.

In December 2005, CCSD commissioned DCC architects to design a replacement school for Tom Williams Elementary that could accommodate 950 students, 230 more than average on a site which is 5 acres less than the current prototypical elementary schools sites.

Adding to the constraints, the current school is to remain in operation while construction of the new school takes place.

DCC architects developed an 82,000 sq. ft. building, capable of sufficiently accommodating the students’ needs while creating a safer and healthier learning environment. By providing more learning spaces the school will be able to offer the northeast community with services designed to boost parent involvement and help students succeed. These services include full-day kindergarten, pre-kindergarten, Mommy & Me and a Family Resource Outreach Center.

Domingo Cambeiro AIA, LEED AP, founder and principal architect for DCC, has no doubt the difference between the existing school and the new replacement will be dramatic. “The students will have a setting that is not only arranged to function better and pleasing to the eye, but also healthier. This allows them to feel more comfortable in their learning environment.” He adds, “Improved air quality, maximum daylighting and a decrease in background noise are some of the features we included in the design. I think the effect this healthier environment has on the improvement of the students’ education will be tracked and noticed for years to come.”

DCC architects successfully designed a space-efficient school that is capable of accommodating the larger number of students and extensive programming requirements in a considerably smaller site with little disruption to the existing building operations. This has eliminated the need for CCSD to purchase a separate larger site for the project or relocate students during construction. The estimated construction cost for the building is approximately $31 million. Construction is scheduled to begin June 2007 with an expected completion date of August 2008.