Construction Comes to a Close on Murrieta’s Newest High School
July 29, 2009
NTD Architecture is pleased to announce the completion of Murrieta Mesa High School, which is the third comprehensive high school for the Murrieta Valley Unified School District. Named after its geographic location, Murrieta Mesa High School will open to a population of approximately 1,200 freshman and sophomores on August 12. An official dedication ceremony will take place on July 31.
“We are extremely pleased with the outcome of this design,” says Richard E. Nowicki, AIA, Partner at NTD Architecture. “Murrieta Mesa High School will offer students an exceptional learning environment on multiple levels; on the academic and athletic levels, students will have every opportunity to achieve a successful high school career.”
The 256,988 square foot school sits on a 62-acre site and offers panoramic views of both the valley and the Santa Rosa Plateau. Facilities include 82 teaching stations, a stadium, a pool complex, athletic fields for varsity and junior varsity baseball and softball, tennis courts, basketball courts, sand volleyball courts, handball courts, and a performing arts center. Maximum student capacity is currently 2,200, but could reach 2,400 with the addition of a future classroom building.
Murrieta Mesa High School boasts an energy efficiency that exceeds California’s Title 24 energy requirements by up to 40.57% in the classroom buildings and has earned the maximum amount of incentive grants from Southern California Edison’s Savings By Design (SBD) program – $150,000. The District also received an additional $500,000 from Proposition 1D funding for environmentally friendly projects.
Factors contributing to the energy efficiency surplus at Murrieta Mesa High School include an energy efficient building shell, high efficiency lighting and mechanical systems, daylighting, cool roofing, superior acoustics, a Variable Volume Temperature system, and low emitting materials. Heat islands will be reduced through the use of shade and lightened impervious areas, and 75% of construction waste will be recycled. A superior indoor environment will provide thermal comfort and increase student productivity.
A District-led team of professionals, students, educators, and community members determined educational specifications for the new school, hosting focus group meetings to refine the functional needs and aspirations for Murrieta Mesa High. It was decided that the elements of flexibility, campus identity, connectivity, learning, and teacher planning would play out as the main focal points in the final design concept. In support of these design elements, NTD incorporated departmental classrooms, a single common gathering space on the campus, opportunities for connection with the community, learning/career centers, and instructional spaces within student areas.
Murrieta Mesa High School is visible from I-15 between Los Alamos and California Oaks Road. The team on the project includes NTD Architecture, Edge Development, Veneklasen Associates, Epic Engineers, Cumming Corporation, Johnson Consulting Engineers, Orness Design Group, Nowell & Associates, KNA Consulting Engineers, and Aquatic Design Group.
Publications
- NTD Architecture Acquires HBFL Architects, Strengthens Presence in California’s Central Coast July 26, 2010
- Murrieta Mesa High School, CASH School Profile January 2010 January 1, 2010
- Final Steel Beam on New San Bernardino Valley College Building Makes 260 Tons August 11, 2009
- Lancaster’s Newest Comprehensive High School Ready for Students August 11, 2009
- Construction Comes to a Close on Murrieta’s Newest High School July 29, 2009