Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences broke ground Sunday, Feb. 9 on its new Science Education & Research Facility, which will house the School’s Middle and Upper School science programs.
Close to 300 people from the community attended the ceremony and celebration, which included hands-on science and art activities for kids of all ages, live music by Crossroads student performers and a collection drive for used denim, which will be used as eco-friendly insulation in the building.
The building, designed by Frederick Fisher and Partners Architects, will be aligned with the I-10 Freeway and 20th Street, with a goal of being certified at least at the LEED Silver level to achieve maximum practical sustainability.
The building will act as a living laboratory and include Monarch butterfly gardens and breeding grounds, which were designed by landscape architect Pamela Burton.
The outdoor space will give students the opportunity to help restore the Monarch butterfly population by providing a protected habitat with California plants to nourish the Monarch through the larval and butterfly stages.
A sculpture by renowned artist Ned Kahn is planned to top the building’s Special Projects Pavilion. The sculpture will feature a hyperbolic paraboloid, which will capture the movement of the wind as it flows through the structure. This iconic artwork will be the most prominent feature on the Crossroads campus and visible from the I-10 Freeway.
The building is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2015.
