RWB Team Celebrates the Groundbreaking of Lake Highlands Middle School
On Tuesday, September 6, 2022, the RWB team joined Cadence McShane Construction, Perkins & Will, and Richardson ISD to break ground on Lake Highlands Middle School . The team celebrated the start of construction at 10301 Walnut Hill Lane in Dallas, next to Lake Highlands Junior High.
Significantly, this project marks Richardson ISD’s first new school construction since 2014, showing a strong commitment to educational advancement. The new 249,000-square-foot, three-story school will feature flexible learning environments and an ICC-500-rated community tornado shelter for safety.
RWB designed the building’s MEP systems to support both student comfort and long-term energy efficiency. The district selected this site to replace the original Lake Highlands Junior High, which was built in the 1960s. As a result, the new facility will modernize education in the area and serve future generations for decades to come.
The facility will use a 4-pipe chilled and heating water system to serve most of the school’s three-story structure. Meanwhile, rooftop AC units will condition the athletic areas and other specialty spaces throughout the building. Centrally located on the first floor, a STEM lab will feature a mechanical room with full-height windows.
This design allows students to observe the mechanical systems that serve the first floor in real time. As a result, instructors can easily incorporate real-world MEP system functions into their STEM curriculum. The design team positioned the project in an underutilized section of the adjacent field to enable phased construction. Because of this strategic placement, crews can build the new facility while keeping the existing school operational. This multi-year phased approach minimizes disruption to students and staff throughout the transition.
The new school will open in August 2024 and accommodate up to 1,500 students in grades 6 through 8. Perkins & Will serves as the Architect of Record, while Cadence McShane leads construction as the General Contractor.
