What once was the site of Middlesex School’s main power plant is now a state-of-the-art Music and Campus Center. The project pays tribute to a 100-year-old brick smokestack, a longstanding campus icon, through an adaptive reuse approach that integrated this feature along with elements of the original building into new construction. The original boiler room with its 25-foot-high ceilings and thick concrete and masonry walls was transformed into a 134-seat recital hall and ties into the new construction that accommodates music and practice areas, classrooms, and collaborative breakout spaces. Windover’s team successfully handled the complicated logistics required to preserve and work around the existing stack, especially with the need for extensive foundation underpinning to support the weight of the building’s expanded footprint.
In the spirit of sustainability, other key green features were incorporated into the design. The building is powered by a geothermal heating and cooling system, and also features ionized window glazing that offers automated environmental controls. Additionally, a green roof was added to regulate storm water runoff and reduce heat impact to the building.
