Northfield High School Renovation and Addition
Northfield, Minnesota
The renovation and addition to the Northfield High School provides significant increases in educational capacity in several departments, as well as replacing the facility’s heating plant and electrical service with new, efficient, state-of-the-art systems that will serve the District for decades to come. Most of the work was accomplished within the existing building footprint; new construction was minimized.
Most of the new construction involved expansion of the Media Center by filling in the courtyard to its north with a large new reading room. The reading room includes a new circulation desk, book stacks, a computer cluster, study tables, and lounge seating. The existing Media center was in turn renovated into new offices, storage, audio/visual labs, and computer instructional facilities within the Media Center’s educational mission.
The Art Department was relocated to the former Vehicle Maintenance facility, which has been moved to a temporary leased area until a new facility can be constructed. New studio spaces for 2-D, 3-D, and Digital Design, with ample daylight, a Gallery, and support facilities were provided. The program enjoys improved accessibility to the newly renovated Photography classroom and darkroom in the adjacent Vocational Technology suite.
Other improvements to Vocational Technology brought several labs into regulatory compliance by upgrading paint facilities and dust collection. In addition to the photography instruction facilities, the Print Shop was relocated and revamped, and includes a new Process Camera room and new computer lab.
In the Science Wing, a new General Science laboratory occupies the former Art Department location; a new general education Seminar Room is adjacent to the new lab.
Upon completion of the new Northfield Middle School, the high school swimming pool was filled in and the room remodeled as an Auxiliary Gym and Strength Training Gym for the Physical Education Department. The gallery of the pool area is now an Aerobic Fitness room, with a small office located on its east end. The Aerobic Fitness room has ADA-compliant ramp access from the Strength Training Gym, as well as a coaching station. The pool filtration equipment below the gallery was removed, freeing up the area for Physical Education storage.
The existing central mechanical room has been expanded, and an all-new heating plant, including a dedicated domestic water heater, has been installed. This new equipment greatly increased the efficiency of the system, as well as adding the capacity needed for the renovation work. A new Electrical Equipment Room is located adjacent to it, to accommodate a new main service panel and transformer.