Manhattan, NY EW Howell Construction Group completed the expansion and renovation work at two private schools. The builder served as general contractor for constructing a new, 30,000 s/f home for Harlem Academy at 655 St. Nicholas Ave. and also led the expansion of Village Community School at 272 W. 10th St.
EW Howell served as general contractor for the construction of a new, five-story, 30,000 s/f permanent home for Harlem Academy. The school rented three storefronts for nearly 20 years and this new building at 655 St. Nicholas Ave. will serve as Harlem Academy’s permanent home for students and staff. EW Howell worked closely with architect Perkins Eastman on a fast-track schedule, nearly doubling the school’s enrollment capacity to 240 people allowing for expanded, separate sections for kindergarten and grades 6-8 and featuring a new airy entry common, a café, a new library, and an outdoor play space.
“Harlem Academy was a unique project because of the size of the project site, which allowed for a brand-new building and a ground-level play yard, a rare opportunity we don’t often see for private schools in Manhattan,” said Dominic Paparo, VP , EW Howell.
“Due to space constraints, a usual project in this market would consist of the renovation of an existing school building or an adaptive re-use of an existing property into a school building.”
EW Howell also served as construction manager for the addition and renovation of the Village Community School. Designed by Marvel Architects, the new, 30,000 s/f, five-level expansion required deep site excavation to allow for a new gymnasium in the cellar. The expansion also features a new library, new classrooms, a rooftop play yard, and classrooms for specialized skills such as woodshop. A feature of the Village Community School project is a curtain wall connection between the existing school building and the new addition, which creates a showcase entrance.
Paparo added, “It was a unique situation that we could utilize Village Community School’s existing ground-level play yard, which sat adjacent to the existing school building, as the site for the new expansion. While each project presented challenges, the result is two amazing new spaces with many opportunities for students and faculty.”
As one of the New York region’s most respected builders for more than 131 years, EW Howell has also completed expansion and renovation work for several other prominent private schools in New York City, including The Dalton School, Brearley School, The Spence School, and The Hewitt School.
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