This new elementary school located within the planned village-style community of Villebois is a key part of the community’s greenspace plan, with a pocket park and play fields that are a community asset beyond the school day. The award-winning school building, designed by DOWA-IBI Group, is LEED Gold certified and centers on innovative and child-centered design with such features as a two-story slide in the library.

The playground invites a wide variety of creative play, as well as engagement with the natural environment. Along with traditional play equipment, it features hills to run or roll down, seating cylinders for social gathering, and a learning garden.

Ecological stormwater management is integral to the site design. Giant scuppers showcase water as it drains from building roofs. A cistern supplies toilet flushing water and is equipped with a giant gauge which allows the students to track the water level. Vegetated swales ring the building and lead to bio-retention basins planted with native wetland plants.

Completed: 2016

Collaborators: Design and Project Management by Caitilin Pope Daum while employed at Walker Macy