Loci Architecture to Design Brooklyn School

NEW YORK CITY — Brooklyn Prospect Charter School has selected Loci Architecture of New York to expand the school’s Windsor Terrace campus. The innovative expansion will include converting part of an existing church convent to classrooms and offices, and is expected to take place this summer.

Divided across two distinct campuses, Brooklyn Prospect Charter School’s elementary program is located in a downtown Brooklyn building that formerly housed St. Joseph’s parochial school. Meanwhile, Brooklyn Charter’s middle and high school programs are located in a former Roman Catholic diocese school in Windsor Park, which has already undergone previous renovations. Upon completion, the planned expansion of that campus will add 5,900 square feet of teaching and administrative space, as well as a new music room.

“Brooklyn Prospect has been very astute in working cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn to satisfy the school’s expanding requirements for well located space,” said Loci Architecture Principal Dave Briggs. Briggs also noted that Loci has been careful to design changes “that respect the original character of the [Windsor Park] building and the presence of the convent.”

Loci Architecture has already completed several projects for the thriving Brooklyn charter school. In 2012, the firm designed new biology and chemistry labs for the Windsor Terrace campus, and added a dance facility to the school’s existing gymnasium. Those additions, as well as this new project, complement the six-year-old charter school’s adoption of an International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, which is recognized by many leading universities around the world as a superior qualification for admission.

Loci Architecture has worked extensively with charter schools and educational institutions, including Saint David’s School, The Carroll School and Molloy College. According to Briggs, the firm understands “how to work quickly under tight budgets without sacrificing quality,” which he believes is extremely important to the expanding charter school movement.

Briggs and Loci architect Heather McKinstry will jointly serve as project leaders for the Windsor Park expansion. Gabor M. Szakal Consulting Engineers P.C. of Manhattan will provide engineering services, while Talisen Construction of New York will serve as the project’s general contractor.

Loci Architecture was founded in 1993 with a focus on sustainable design and a commitment to creating richer, more dynamic places that restore natural and built environments. In addition to educational design, the firm’s projects include non-profit community centers, building restorations, single-family private residences, school renovations, and office spaces.