Alexander Montessori School | Ludlum Campus

Palmetto Bay, FL

LEED Gold

Awards:
Excellence in Architecture – Merit - Miami Chapter AIA 
People’s Choice Award AIA 
USGBC - Design Excellence LEED for Schools K-12

 

Curtis + Rogers provided landscape architectural services for this new LEED Gold building at Ludlum Campus. The Front drop-off/parking area was re-configured, and additional parking was added on the north side of the campus.  The architecture is reminiscent of a summer camp cottage, utilizing natural materials, with exposed wood beams.  The green space between the school and the road was enhanced with thick planting to buffer the road and to give the school a greener presence from the road. There is a small cistern that captures the rainwater off the roof and irrigates a section of the campus.  To construct the building, it was necessary to remove a large oak tree.  The headmaster used this as a learning experience for the students who watched the tree being taken down and sections of its trunk are stored on site with plans to build some natural benches out of the wood.  The school holds nature and ecological education in high regard, and the plant materials were selected to give a variety of different leaf typologies, which is one of their areas of study.