The SFUSD ArtsCenter is a public high school educating 600 students with an emphasis on the visual and performing arts.  The San Francisco Unified School District asked us to explore options to relocate the school to a parcel they own in the heart of the Civic Center Performing Arts District.  The site is a San Francisco historic landmark and the former home of the High School of Commerce during the first half of the 20th century.

The challenge was to incorporate the specialized needs of the arts high school while maintaining the integrity of the historic structures on the block.  The project will create a new 175,000 square foot high school building with dance and music studios, practice rooms, classrooms, art studios and a black box theater.  Once complete, the project will also incorporate the restoration and seismic upgrades to the adjacent historic Nourse Auditorium.

Services include building program validation, master planning, and conceptual design.