Mother Seton Academy Gymnasium

Baltimore, MD

Details
Basketball court with bleacher seating for 80 people
Community room with controlled access, restrooms, storage, and support spaces
Exterior courtyard and learning garden
Sustainable design
Owner
Mother Seton Academy
Services
Programming, Site Analysis, Sustainable Design, Full Design Services, Construction Administration, Building Information Modeling

In an effort to expand the programs currently offered to students, Mother Seton Academy recently acquired a lot behind the school to construct a gymnasium so that students can stay on site for instruction. GWWO worked with Mother Seton Academy to design the new facility that allows the school to provide opportunities for growth in physical education, music, and science education.

Connected to the current school building through a covered walkway, the new gymnasium includes a middle school-sized basketball court with bleacher seating for 80 people, a community room with controlled access, restrooms, storage, and support spaces. The building's exterior pattern and colors mirrors that of the surrounding neighborhood, and the building’s volumes step down gradually, reaching out and welcoming members of the community.

Sustainable design strategies include rooftop photovoltaic panels, high albedo roof, low flow fixtures, LED lighting, rainwater harvesting, and daylighting.

The surrounding site development—including a new courtyard with learning garden that facilitates hands-on learning experiences—will provide students with a safer space for arrival and dismissal than the heavily trafficked Greenmount Avenue.