• Colorado Schools Strive for Zero Net Energy

    More Colorado schools are pursuing Net Zero Energy goals, including RTA-designed Douglass Elementary in the Boulder Valley School District and School in the Woods in Academy District 20. Read more at Mile High CRE.

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  • School in the Woods Eco-Charrette

    Thank you to everyone who participated in our eco-charrette for Academy District 20's School in the Woods! Teachers, students, parents, alumni, and community members came together with the design team and GE Johnson to brainstorm sustainability and environmental goals for the new school design. We received a lot of valuable input and we can't wait to incorporate the feedback into the final design!

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  • RTA Architects Chosen to Design Two New Academy District 20 Schools

    RTA is excited to announce that we have been chosen to lead the designs of the new School in the Woods and the Middle School at Chinook Trail for Academy School District 20 in Colorado Springs. These are two of the first new schools that are being designed and constructed as a result of the District’s $230M bond passage in November 2016.

    The Middle School at Chinook Trail

    The Middle School at Chinook Trail will be the ninth middle school for the District and will be located on the campus of the existing Chinook Trail Elementary School. The 125,000 square-foot sustainable, energy-efficient, and healthy learning-focused facility will provide 21st Century educational environments to accommodate 1,000 students and is being built in conjunction with Bryan Construction and MOA Architecture. The project will be an expansion of the Chinook Trail Elementary program, featuring close collaboration between the two schools to create a Kindergarten through eighth grade campus.

    The School in the Woods

    The new 14,000-square-foot School in the Woods will replace four existing modular buildings and will increase student capacity and continue to support its robust community outreach program and home school academy. Flexible learning suites, a nature center, outdoor learning spaces, and a library/technology commons will support the School’s academically challenging “naturalist” based curriculum for fourth grade students. Working with GE Johnson Construction Company, the design goal of the new building will be to achieve net zero energy and/or LEED Platinum while existing in harmony with the Black Forest environment. 

    Both projects are currently in the design and preconstruction planning phases. Construction of the new School in the Woods is estimated to be completed in the spring of 2018. The Middle School at Chinook Trail is expected to be completed for the 2019 -2020 school year.

    View the full press release here.

  • Raising the bar for the Pikes Peak Summit Complex

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    The goals set by Pikes Peak Summit Complex design team - including RTA Architects and GWWO, Inc. / Architects - already surpass LEED silver standards. But sights have been set even higher. The team now is pursuing the Living Building Challenge, the world's most vigorous performance standard for structures. Read more about the enviromental goals of the Pikes Peak Summit Complex here.

  • Ignacio Elementary awarded LEED Gold

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    Ignacio Elementary School was recently certified LEED Gold by the U.S. Green Building Council. The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System is a point-based benchmark for the design, construction, and operation of high-performance green buildings. LEED Gold status illustrates a very high level of sustainability.

    Ignacio’s PK-5 Elementary School is the second building in district-wide Master Plan led by RTA. This Master Plan included the renovation of three existing school buildings and the design of a brand new middle school. In the second phase of the Master Plan, the existing intermediate (grades 4-6) building was renovated into what is now Ignacio Elementary. Existing and new classrooms were designed as flexible learning spaces with enhanced acoustics, daylighting through tubular daylighting devices and expansive exterior windows, and the ability to accommodate current and future technology upgrades. The high-performing, sustainable facility also uses a Geo Exchange System, a roof-mounted 50kW Photovoltaic Array, LED lighting throughout, and low-water native plants for landscaping.

    The implementation of LEED sustainability standards is important to reduce the building’s impact on the environment, to improve operating costs, and, most importantly, to create an environment that produces happier, healthier, and more productive students. High-performing facilities can improve comfort, promote learning, and advance productivity, while saving energy and doing what is right for our community. RTA chooses to live by these principles because they help create exceptional architecture.

    Ignacio School District 11-JT is proud of their new elementary school because it reflects their values and aspirations.