Work has begun on a long-awaited expansion of P.S. 144 in the Queens borough of New York City.
QNS.com reports that the the $52.4 million project will consist of a four-story addition with 26 new classrooms and a new entrance lobby, among other amenities.
The school, also known as the Colonel Jeromus Remsen School, serves 894 students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade and has experienced significant enrollment growth in recent years.
The new space will accommodate 590 students and eliminate the need for the temporary modular classroom facilities now in use. The addition will be adjacent to the four-floor, L-shaped original school from 1931.
The exterior architecture of the addition will replicate the existing school's look. It is being designed in accordance with the NYC Green Schools Guide and Rating System, which specifies energy efficiency and healthful environment requirements for city public schools.
The project also will incorporate improvements to the existing school building, including the replacement of doorknobs with ADA-compliant door latches; ADA-related relocations and renovations of bathrooms; upgrades to an exercise room, a guidance suite, auditorium and four classrooms; and the installation of an inclined chair lift to provide accessibility to the lower area of the existing building’s third floor.
The project will create a new ADA-compliant entrance and lobby, as well as two new elevators. The cellar of the new building will house both a dining room and a kitchen. An all-new principal’s and general offices will be on the first floor.
The architect is Urbahn Architects, and the general contractor is MPCC Corp.
