DLR Group CEO Griff Davenport today announced that Washington, D.C. design firm Bowie Gridley Architects is joining the firm.

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As leaders in the planning and design of educational facilities across the nation, Bowie Gridley Architects (BGA) has recently been focusing on how best to assist schools, colleges, and universities in returning to their campuses during the COVID-19 pandemic. As many students across the country may have experienced educational loss due to prolonged closures during the pandemic, BGA has been actively creating and implementing plans to assist educational facilities in their endeavor to reopen their classrooms and campuses in the coming months.

While some school districts and campuses have implemented distance learning, it is not generally believed to be as beneficial as the in-person learning experience. If your institution needs assistance in returning to some semblance of normalcy during these trying times, please contact one of our educational planners to discuss your plans to reopen. Details are provided on the attached flier.

Bowie Gridley Architects is pleased to share news of the recently completed Recital Hall and Arts Center at St. Christopher’s School in Richmond, Virginia. This new facility features a 450-seat recital hall, music teaching spaces, art studios and gallery space. The building has a direct tie-in to the existing Wilton Hall Middle School classroom building and is oriented to create a new campus “gateway” entry point. The recital hall has been set one full story into the ground to reduce the visible height relative to adjacent buildings.

BGA Principal Richard Salopek was recently elected to serve a one-year term as President of the McLean Planning Committee.  The MPC is a community organization comprised of representatives from citizens associations and businesses that advise the Fairfax County Dranesville District Supervisor and Planning Commissioner on land use and development issues in the McLean (Virginia) Community Business Center. Rich has served on the MPC since 2003 and is currently one of four Directors representing the McLean Citizen’s Association. For more information on the McLean Planning Committee, please visit their website at https://mcleanplanning.org/

BGA is pleased to announce an update to Choate Rosemary Hall’s Hill House renovation project. The historic Hill House building is undergoing renovations after being damaged in a fire last year caused by a lightning strike. A new addition to the north end of the building is progressing and is projected to be completed in the summer of 2021. This project is anticipated to be LEED Gold certified.

The new, state-of-the-art, McDonogh Middle School in Owings Mills, Maryland topped out construction recently with the expectation of opening in the Spring of 2021. The official name of the new school building will be the “Greenebaum Middle School” at McDonogh School. Bowie Gridley Architects was selected to provide design services to replace the existing Finney Building—a 1930s-era structure which had become obsolete. The new three-story Georgian-style building will be built on the existing site and was designed to reflect the scale of the adjacent buildings. https://www.mcdonogh.org/about/campus-facilities/construction-cameras

Check out the Virtual Tour video and construction progress webcam of the Flint Hill School, new PETERSON MIDDLE SCHOOL in Oakton, Virginia.  The new Middle School will contain an Innovation Lab for 7th & 8th grade students to embrace experimentation and creativity.  This exciting new environment will allow for questioning and exploration across the academic spectrum.  Founded on 21st century learning principles, the school will fully support project-based learning in group and individual formats as well as other paradigms in the future.  The industrial design of the building presents a flexible learning environment to allow for easy changes in space and curriculum. The new middle school is expected to be complete by Fall of 2020. www.flinthill.org/peterson-middle-school/

The new Hoxton Track and Field project at Episcopal High School in Alexandria, Virginia will feature a new state-of-the-art 400m track, a natural turf soccer field, and the full complement of track and field event features. This new facility will replace the existing track and field venue. Shown here is the shelter pavilion that is being constructed at one end of the track. It will provide a home base for track meets and soccer tournaments, a gathering place for students, and as a shelter in the event of storms. The entire project is slated to be completed and ready for use by early fall.

This Thursday and Friday, February 27-28, 2020 BGA will be attending the annual NAIS Conference in Philadelphia, PA. Principals Richard Salopek, AIA and Elise Robinson, AIA will be there to discuss the many exciting things we are doing with PK-12 independent schools throughout the US. Stop by our booth and say hi!

Here is a time lapse on the current progress of the St. Christopher’s Recital Hall! Can’t wait to see the finalized results. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlvRGj0qsEg&feature=youtu.be

On October 22, 2019, Heather Wnuk and Richard Salopek, AIA accepted the Fairfax County Honorable Mention Award at the James M. Scott Exceptional Design Awards.

The annual awards recognize the achievements of outstanding planning and design projects that have exceeded the qualifications, which include superior work of architecture and outstanding site design. The John Marshall Library was commended for its renovations, which the design award jury commented “enhance the visitor experience” earning it the Honorable Mention Award.

Bowie Gridley Architects is pleased to announce the groundbreaking for the New Upper School at St. Paul’s School in Baltimore, Maryland on May 7, 2019.

The new three story building will contain classrooms, science labs, STEM labs, administrative spaces, a learning center, and other program functions for grades 9-12.  The design is intended to consolidate currently scattered program elements into a central location and to provide a vibrant STEM centered learning environment.  The proposed 60,000 sq. ft. building will replace the existing upper school building which will be demolished.  The building plan is organized around a new exterior plaza which will unite the existing Library (Fisher Hall) and the Chapel creating an important outdoor gathering area.  Considerable effort has been made to unify the new design with the existing campus context, scale and materials palette.

Bowie Gridley Architects is pleased to join Fairfax County in celebrating the reopening of the John Marshall Library in Alexandria, Virginia on October 27, 2018. John Marshall Library is a branch library used by more than 160,000 visitors annually. BGA designed additions and renovations to transform the 40+ year old facility into a state-of-the-art 21st Century community library.

http://www.fairfaxtimes.com/articles/fairfax_county/john-marshall-library-prepares-for-public-after-full-makeover/article_8776fd2c-d95f-11e8-8b63-f7f05b8979b8.html

The Woodrow Wilson Library in Falls Church, VA, designed by Bowie Gridley Architects (BGA), has been published in the Fall 2016 issue of ArchitectureDC, the magazine of the DC Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

“Unwrapping the (Concrete) Box, Renovation Transforms Suburban Library” written by Denise Liebowitz explores the award-winning renovation and addition to the existing library to meet the needs of a vibrant 21st century community library.

Wakefield High School in Arlington, VA has achieved LEED-NC Gold. With an impressive 46 of the required points to achieve a Gold rating, the new 338,000 sf high school incorporates a variety of sustainable technologies including a geothermal HVAC system, photovoltaic (PV) panels, solar hot water heating panels, rainwater harvesting for flushing toilets and irrigation, daylight harvesting, and interactive energy use displays.

Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia will be honored with an Award of Excellence from the 2015 DESIGNArlington awards program. DESIGNArlington is a biennial awards program that recognizes excellence in design, showcasing the distinctive architectural, historic preservation, landscape and public art projects in the community. This awards program highlights Arlington’s architectural diversity and some of the best examples of design. The program is administered by the Department of Community Planning, Housing and Development’s Center for Urban Design and Research. This year’s award winners will be recognized at the County Board recessed meeting on February 23 and honored at the DESIGNArlington Awards Ceremony on February 25. More information is available on the Arlington, VA Projects and Planning page.

Bowie Gridley Architects (BGA), a firm recognized for planning and design at leading independent schools internationally, will participate in the TABS 2013 Annual Conference, to be held December 5-7, 2013 at the Marriott Copley Place in Boston, MA.

The Association of Boarding Schools (TABS) is an association of more than 300 college-preparatory boarding schools across the United States, Canada, and abroad.  The  TABS Annual Conference consists of a series of workshops of value to school administrators and staff.

BGA will provide information about the firm’s recent planning and design work for independent schools, including facilities for academics, arts, athletics and student life, and offer insights to member schools contemplating growth and renewal of their campuses. BGA representatives will be at Table #4.

Founded in 1981, Bowie Gridley Architects specializes in work for institutions of community significance – academic and student life facilities, performing arts centers, libraries, athletic and recreational facilities, museums and cultural centers. The architecture, planning and interior design firm is based in Washington, D.C. and works with clients throughout the U.S and abroad.