DESIGN PROCESS

  • The District values the input of the community, staff, parents, and students as we embark on designing four new elementary schools. To gather input, we have formed a design team and process to support the architect's Schematic Design phase - one of three phases of design. 

    The process will include input from the community and parents via three neighborhood design "visioning" meetings per school. We are also collecting community input regarding the exterior design via an online Thoughtexchange, which is essentially a moderated online conversation platform for folks who maybe can't attend in-person meetings. Additionally,  an internal team consisting of the principals of Lincoln, McKinley, Underwood, and Wilson/WSTEM Schools and district administrators will work with the architects and designers from Plunkett Raysich Architects (PRA) to serve as liaisons to share information and collect feedback from the staff.

    The comprehensive work completed by the community-based Facilities Advisory Committee and the "model school" concept the Committee created will serve as a foundation for the design process. 

    Each of the four new elementary schools will be based upon a common model "space program" which means each building will generally have the same number and type of rooms and spaces.  The unique characteristics of each site and neighborhood will shape the arrangement of those spaces, ultimately resulting in four unique schools based upon one common vision.  

MCKINLEY AND WILSON/WSTEM

  •  March 7, 2019 - Neighborhood Meetings Announced for McKinley and Wilson/WSTEM

    Construction of the new Wilson Elementary/Wauwatosa STEM and Mckinley Elementary Schools won't begin until next summer - 2020 - but the Wauwatosa School District and its architect, Plunkett Raysich Architects,  are beginning the community engagement portion of the design process for both schools. The first of three neighborhood meetings for each school will begin the week of March 19. Learn more here. 

LINCOLN AND UNDERWOOD

  • April 18, 2019

    On Tuesday, April 18, the District and its architect presented an updated design of Lincoln Elementary School based on the feedback of the City's Design Review Board (DRB) from the last meeting. The DRB said the updated design was a "great improvement" and "major step forward in the right direction". The DRB approved of the stacked kindergarten "wing" and the additional outdoor space that change created. It provided some additional feedback about landscaping on the SE corner of the building and a desire to connect that corner more to community activity. There was also some discussion about what color the panels should be on the east side of the building, aesthetics of the exterior walls of the gym space and general landscaping feedback. The District and its architect will address some of the additional feedback and submit for approval on June 6.

    Updated Lincoln Elementary Design April 2019

    Above: Underwood Ave. View

    Below: Wauwatosa Ave View

    wauwatosa ave view of new Lincoln elementary school april 2019

    close up of front entrance area new lincoln elementary school design

    Above: Close up of main entry area -Underwood Ave. View

    Below: View of gym exterior on corner of Milwaukee Ave. and Underwood Ave.

    view of gym exterior of corner of Underwood and Milwaukee

     

    MARCH 11, 2019 

    The District and its architect, Plunkett Raysich Architects (PRA), presented slight modifications to the exterior design of the new Lincoln Elementary School during the Wauwatosa School Board meeting on Monday, March 11.

    The tweaks are in response to feedback from members of the City’s Design Review Board, an advisory group of mayor-appointed members tasked with ensuring the exterior design and aesthetic of new construction provides continuity with the surrounding neighborhoods.  Read More. 

    FEBRUARY 15, 2019 

    The Wauwatosa School Board unanimously approved the Schematic Design - or first phase of design - for the new Lincoln and Underwood Elementary Schools during its meeting on Monday, February 11.  Read More 

    Next Steps: The design plans now move through the City approval process including review by the Design Review Board, the City Plan Commission, and the Common Council for final approval.