Ben Franklin Elementary School

Photo credit: Mahlum Architects

Land Use & Community

The new Ben Franklin Elementary School replaced an existing facility on a narrow ten-acre site that is oriented along a north-south axis. The surrounding residential neighborhood is interlaced with equestrian trails, horse paddocks, and forested lands, including a mature stand of Douglas fir trees that covers the northern third of the property. This rich natural setting and a requirement to maintain operation of the existing school during construction led to new facility's location at the center of the site, embracing the woods.

Community workshops were used to identify the needs and desires of the district, city, students, parents, and neighbors. The forested area at the northern portion of the site was identified as a community asset. As a result, the design of the school focused on highlighting the building's relationship to the forest for both learning and recreation. Connections from both the classrooms and play areas to this natural environment are maintained. The school building was shifted to the east to allow both visual and physical connections from the public street to the forest beyond, inviting the neighborhood to utilize all outdoor amenities of the site.

In addition, the site design balances the academic needs of the school with the recreational needs of the neighborhood. Partnering with the City Parks Department allowed for passive recreational improvements within the forested area and the creation of a multi-sport playfield for shared community use.

Through community partnerships and outreach the facility and site are being used well after school hours, during weekends, and during summer months. Interior spaces that are heavily used by the public, including the library, gym, and commons, were located near the entry for easy after-hours use.

The parking area is configured to accommodate only daily users (staff and volunteers). Student pick-up and drop-off is accommodated by double one-way drive lanes within the parking lot. Large school events utilize the bus loop and paved play areas for overflow parking, eliminating the need for the oversized parking lots found at many schools. About 85% of the building population uses transit options other than a single-occupancy vehicle. Only 0.13 parking spaces are provided per person.

Green Strategies

• Properties with Excessive Impacts
  • Avoid contributing to sprawl
• Property Selection Opportunities
  • Select already-developed sites for new development

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Our thanks to the ENERGY STAR program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and to the U.S. Department of Energy, and to BuildingGreen, Inc. for hosting the submission and judging forms.

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