Dowling Elementary School

Minneapolis, MN

Kodet Architectural Group was asked to design a gymnasium addition to the Dowling Elementary School.  The existing school had numerous additions that were in a variety of architectural styles; creating another addition that tied everything together was an important design initiative.  Furthermore, this facility is an environmental magnet school on an attractive, wooded site along the Mississippi River.

It was vitally important to staff, students, and the neighborhood that the addition have as little impact on the grounds as possible.  Consequently, the design of the gym was skewed from the rest of the building so that a stand of mature trees did not have to be removed during construction.  Internally, the addition’s adjacency to the therapeutic swimming pool allows the two activity areas to share the remodeled locker and shower rooms.