Mark Cavagnero Associates completed a Master Plan, a Concept design study, and Schematic through Design Development phase for the Hamlin school, a K-8 private girl's school.  The campus is located on a steep Pacific Heights site, in 3 buildings that step down the hill.  Goals of the renovation / expansion include prioritizing the academic objectives of Project-based learning and "STEAM" by enlarging classrooms, bringing together lower and upper school Science rooms, expanding the gymnasium to meet athletic size regulations, and creating a separate Multipurpose room for performing arts, and simplifying the circulation of the campus to better unite the buildings and the community.

McKinne hall, a 3-story 1960's concrete building, will undergo a full renovation including seismic, mechanical, electrical and plumbing.  The building will be extended back to meet an existing retaining wall and excavated down a level below the first floor, creating space for a new larger and taller Middle School regulation size gymnasium as well as a separate Multipurpose space for performing arts.  The existing retaining wall will be tied back to the hillside and underpinned as required for the new expansion.  Retractable seating and theatrical equipment will be provided in the Multipurpose room to accommodate assembly and performance functions.  The classrooms will be reconfigured, enlarged, and fully renovated.  A new terrace on the roof of the new gymnasium, directly adjacent to the science rooms, will provide a large central outdoor space primarily for use as an outdoor science classroom with space for messy experiments, but will also accommodate play and gathering uses.  A new stair and elevator tower will replace the separate stairs and elevators in McKinne Hall and the Middle Building clarifying circulation and freeing up space in both buildings for other uses.

The Middle Building, of 1970's and 80's construction, part concrete and part steel & metal decking, will have an existing exterior center stair relocated to consolidate the two sides of the existing dining room allowing more students to dine at the same time.  A moveable partition will allow the space to be divided for flexibility. 

The historic Stanwood hall is not part of the current scope, however MCA assisted with a summer transformation of the library into a combination library and “Maker” space, now dubbed the “Riveter Lab”.  Flexible furniture, better lighting, and project storage bins contribute to the success of this space.