Schooled in history

Masonry Construction, Sept, 2003 by Diana Granitto

Space for new facilities was at a premium in Queens, N.Y., so Jackson Heights Elementary School P.S. 212 squeezed nearly 100,000 square feet of educational facilities onto a 22,000-square-foot inner-city lot. An existing religious community center was torn down to make way for the school, which is tucked between two surviving brick structures in the nationally designated historic district.

To make the most of the tiny site, the design met the four-story height restriction above grade and added two more levels, including a two-story gym underground, below street level. A large playground sits on the rooftop.

Equally challenging was tying in the design with the neighboring historic architecture. "We wanted to do something creative that felt comfortable with surrounding buildings without being a reproduction," said Allan Anderson of Anderson La Rocca Anderson Haynes, architect on the project. "The design reflects--in an abstract way--the architecture of the area. It borrows from the forms and details, such as towers, arches, and gables." Several colors of brick combined with precast impart scale, texture, and warmth, Anderson added.

The brick-precast motif carries through to the inside, where interior brick walls were placed using a stacked bond pattern. Block walls were used in service areas.

Among the $30 million project's numerous awards were two honors from the American Institute of Architects: one for design and one for masonry construction.

Project Participants

Masonry Contractor: Kelly Masonry Corp., Mineola, N.Y.

Architect: Anderson La Rocca Anderson Haynes, Rye, N.Y.

General Contractor: J.A. Jones, New York, N.Y.

Owner: New York City School Construction Authority