DC PREP Public Charter School Brings Life Back to Historic Anacostia School.

DC PREP selected a compact site originally developed for a parochial school but abandoned years ago. The original building, constructed in 1906, is a Contributing Structure in the Anacostia Historic District and therefore requires historic review by HPO and the Historic Preservation Review Board for exterior changes and additions. This project has two additions of a size to require careful, thoughtful architectural moves to support, rather than compete with, the historic building.

This is an Elementary School, built around a 20,000 sf renovation and 35,000 sf of new construction.

An extensive feasibility study was conducted to test whether this site would accommodate the program and satisfy historic review. Detailed programming, both quantitative and qualitative, was conducted and tested in a number of iterations to achieve a clear set of objectives and constraints.

Shinberg.Levinas solved the program objectives on a site highly constrained by its size, zoning requirements, function, and both the massing of the addition and the detailing of the facades in ways that were judged very appropriate to the task, by the HPRB, as well as neighborhood groups.