In April, the commercial partners will tender the first phase of the positive net energy The Lexington High School replacement in Lexington, Mass., is scheduled to begin construction this summer.
The four-story, 440,000-square-foot building will consist of three connected L-shaped buildings, which architect Lorraine Finnegan of SMMA calls a “flower” configuration.
“What I think is really fun about this project is that it speaks to every neighborhood in the place.” says Finnegan. “We have three main entrances … and so it really speaks to each community that it faces.”
The three wings of the building will surround a central set that will include a dining room and will serve as the “heart of the school”. The school will accommodate 2,395 students and will be powered by 4MW of ground and ground solar panels. It is expected that there will be enough power to feed the energy back into the grid.
This project involves building on top of the existing sports fields and, once built, demolishing the existing building and replicating the fields that were displaced as part of the project.
Mike Burton of Dore + Whittierthe owner’s project manager, calls the building replacement process a “flip flop.”
“Most of the projects we do [are] exactly what we’re doing here,” says Burton, “which, in some cases, is building a few feet away.”
The location of the new building relative to the existing building has a pinch point about 18-20 feet apart. Burton said mitigations will be put in place to ensure building occupants are disrupted as little as possible during this construction period.
“The site itself is a bit difficult with the geotechnical conditions and some wetlands, but everything is solvable,” he said. He will work with the local conservation commission and receive an order of conditions that will set rules to make sure the wetlands are protected.
“We’re navigating trails through wetlands to provide educational opportunities in outdoor classrooms, so environmental science classrooms can get out there and [observe].”
It will be an all-electric building using a hybrid HVAC system, with ground source heat pumps and air source heat pumps.
“This is an educationally progressive town,” Finnegan said. “They are also progressive when it comes to sustainability.”
S.MMA will still be drawing designs until May 2027, but they are doing early release packages to take certain areas of work out of the overall design so they can start work sooner. Turner Construction will work with the project team to procure subcontractors. The site enablement package will be released in April. In September the team will start the foundation and steel work. The final guaranteed maximum price is scheduled for spring 2027.
Construction is scheduled be completed in December 2030.
