Gresham High School

Project Updates

Project Updates

April 2021

After months of distance learning, Gresham High School officially welcomed students into the brand new, completed building for in-person instruction this April. Construction of Phase II of the renovations at Gresham High School were completed this past January. Since students were previous in the building, construction crews completed their work on the brand new gymnasium, women’s locker room, counseling and administration offices, media center, teachers’ lounge, weight room, as well as a few new classrooms and a computer lab.

September 2019

This September marked completion of the Phase 1 construction of the renovations underway at Gresham High School.

There are 54 new classrooms in the Phase 1 construction, including 8 science classrooms, a new band room, choir room, and a black box theater.
The historic muses that previously graced front of the campus have been preserved and installed in an interior courtyard, tying the school’s history to its future.
Phase 1 provides 111,000 square feet of new school space to Gresham High School

PHASE 2 CONSTRUCTION UNDERWAY – TO BE COMPLETE JANUARY 2021

Construction will continue through the next school year throughout the Gresham campus.
A new auditorium and auto shop will open to students next February.
The new parking lot will be complete by Fall 2020
Phase 2 construction includes new gymnasium, women’s locker room, counseling and administration offices, media center, teachers’ lounge, weight room, classrooms and computer lab
The sages and sentinels that were removed from original façade will flank the entrance to the new courtyard on Main Street at the end of Phase 2 construction
Construction schedule is on budget, and on time for January 2021 completion.

August 2019

Fortis Construction shared these aerial photos of the construction progress at Gresham High School.

July 2019

(Photos credit Theresa Carlson / The Gresham Outlook)

The Gresham Outlook took a tour of the construction underway at Gresham High School. The article provides details about the 42 new classrooms that will open to students this fall, how construction crews are preserving the art deco sculptures that adorned the old campus, and how students will navigate the building during the second phase of construction beginning this school year.

March 2019

Thanks to the Gresham Chamber of Commerce, Gresham Ford, and Fortis Architecture for sponsoring a “Try Local Tuesday” tour of the Gresham High School Construction Site. When students arrive at the Gresham High School campus in time for the 2019-2020 school year, there will be 53 new classrooms at Gresham High School, 8 of them science classrooms. The new courtyard will be open, complete with the muse garden including many of the original statues that fronted Gresham High School along Main Street. The new choir, band and black box theater will be ready for students, as well as the new auto body shop. The new auditorium at Gresham High School will be ready for student performances in January of 2020, and after that construction crews will be focusing on building a new gymnasium and expanding the kitchen space in GHS’s cafeteria.

September 2018

This month, construction crews installed the largest crane in Gresham’s history at the Gresham High School construction site.

August 2018

Demolition of the existing auditorium is complete. Footings for orchestra pit of the new auditorium, and tower crane pad are excavated. The crane is scheduled to arrive on September 18th. Reinforcing steel is being installed preparing for concrete placement. Site utilities are starting to be installed including onsite sanitary, storm, and electrical.

July 2018 – Demolition Underway at Gresham High School

After this past spring’s exciting groundbreaking ceremony, demolition is well-underway at Gresham High School. Construction crews have already demolished the auto body classroom, the childcare center, and are finishing the deconstruction of the old auditorium and childcare center.

May 2018 – Auditorium upgrades promise to inspire arts appreciation

“This summer, construction begins on a brand-new, 550-seat auditorium on the southern edge of Gresham High School’s campus. The new auditorium will include a massive atrium that faces SE Division Street looking towards downtown Gresham.”

April 2018 – Groundbreaking Ceremony for Gresham High School

Mayor Bemis joins students and GBSD Board Members in this April’s groundbreaking ceremony for the new Gresham High School.

January 2018 – Historic Doors to Return In Gresham High Reconstruction

“Gresham High School students in 2020 will have access to a state-of-the-art building. The new school will have technology unthinkable to previous generations.

However, the new building will also contain historic elements from its past. Thanks to a former art teacher, the new building will feature an iconic set of hand-wrought iron doors first installed over 80 years ago.”

December 2017 – Gresham High School redesign receives vote of support from City

“The district’s efforts to build a new Gresham High School passed a significant hurdle last month when the City of Gresham’s Design Commission approved plans for the new building on a 6-1 vote. This approval, passed after a meaningful dialogue with staff from the city and the district at a November meeting, allows the District to move forward with preparing for construction, slated to begin next year.”

October 2017 – Gresham High School: Honoring the past, building for the future

Through community input the design team learned the building’s facade was a point of pride and should be incorporated into the new design.

“The community let us know that retaining the facade in the new design was an important feature of the new building—but not at the expense of building a great educational facility,” said project architect Richard Higgins. “Our challenge in the design process was to find a way to keep the look of the facade, to incorporate architecturally-significant elements from the original building, while staying on budget.”

May 2017 – Working with the City of Gresham and Design Commission

The district has been working closely with the City and the Design Commission to create a design and site plan for Gresham High school that meets the goals and objectives of all interested parties.

On May 3, 2017 the district met with the Design Commission to present a preliminary design for GHS.

Based on comments received at the May 3rd Design Commission meeting and numerous meetings with City of Gresham staff and community members, the design of future improvements at Gresham High School has evolved. The refined design balances budget limitations, school program and security needs, site constraints and deeply held community feelings towards Gresham High School. The outcome is a refined design that will meet school program and security needs while respecting more of the community’s desire to preserve the context of the building and, at the same time, create more of a gateway presence at the key intersection of Division and Main.

Timeline:

April 6, 2017: Reviewed downtown streetscape guidelines with City of Gresham Staff
April 12, 2017: Submitted “Early Design Assistance” documents to City of Gresham
April 17, 2017: Submitted “Land Use Pre-Application Conference” documents to City of Gresham
April 25, 2017: GBSD Bond Project Meeting with City of Gresham staff
May 3, 2017 : “Early Design Assistance” meeting with Design Commission
May 10, 2017: “Land-Use Pre-Application Conference” with City of Gresham
May 10, 2017: Received “Early Design Assistance” summary from City of Gresham
June 6, 2017: City of Gresham Design Review Meetings
June 30, 2017: GBSD submitted new design to Gresham Design Review Commission
July 19, 2017: Next planned meeting with Gresham Design Review Commission
Nov 17, 2017: Gresham Design Review Commission approves plans for Gresham High School Expansion
April 4, 2018: Groundbreaking Ceremony for Gresham High School Expansion

About the Project

About the Project – Planned Improvements

The new school design puts student access, health, safety and security as a top priority. The school will be barrier free to anyone with mobility, vision or auditory limitations. Student, teachers and administrators will have access to all community building gathering places. The partially replaced high school will create an easily monitored environment where administrators and teachers are comfortable in knowing who has been greeted and screened to enter the school. Clean indoor air quality and access to day-lighting will reduce absenteeism, improve classroom teaching and test scores.

A series of new “porches” along Main and Division will create a highly activated streetscape. The main entry points are slightly elevated above street level to add prominence and ascension up and into the school. The continuation of the finish floor lines, create an architectural base of the school. At street level the porch edges will be used as benches and casual gathering places. The porches are accessible from the street level by integrated ramps rising up to front, welcoming outdoor vestibules that clearly identify entry and access.

The school entry points are clearly connected to mid-block pedestrian crosswalks along Main and Division; but, most prominently at the corner of Main and Division. The overhead protected walkway along the Division side of the school directs pedestrians other school entrances to an east.

The most visually distinguishing element of the school’s exterior is the highly transparent entrance lobby to the theater at the corner of Main and Division. The activated entry will be a visually prominent architectural statement with elevated entry base, recessed doorway, and deep overhanging projected façade and sunshade. The theater will anchor the northern end of the Main Street and downtown Gresham. The iconic entry will be The Gateway to Gresham as intended in the downtown redevelopment plan.

The partially replaced High School will reduce waste and save energy by including sustainable design practices such as exterior sunshades, efficient exterior walls and roofs, storm-water management, recycling of waste and repurposing of historic elements. The school’s 1940’s WPA façade will be honored in concept and detail. The flanking, massive “bookends” will be reconstructed and adorned with the original artifacts – athletic sculptures, Greek goddesses’ statuary and rosettes. The memorable façades will continue to dominate the Main Street façade. The historic gingko trees will remain. In the center, beyond the trees, symmetrically balanced in a courtyard will be new focal structure on which the main entry “sage” sculptures will be redisplayed.

When students arrive at the Gresham High School campus in time for the 2019-2020 school year, there will be 53 new classrooms at Gresham High School, 8 of them science classrooms. The new courtyard will be open, complete with the muse garden including many of the original statues that fronted Gresham High School along Main Street. The new choir, band and black box theater will be ready for students, as well as the new auto body shop. The new auditorium at Gresham High School will be ready for student performances in January of 2020, and after that construction crews will be focusing on building a new gymnasium and expanding the kitchen space in GHS’s cafeteria.

Community and Stakeholder Involvement

Community and Stakeholder Involvement