This new 6 137-square-meter two-storey school is Atlantic Canada’s first LEED v4 certified project. It contains space for up to 400 students and uses a biomass boiler for its heating needs.

The school was designed for performance and occupant comfort. It contains 21 classrooms and use-specific areas, including a music room, a performing arts room, a library, a gymnasium, student services, administration offices and a cafeteria. The classrooms are organized around age groupings, which form smaller schools within the school. This approach creates a tight-knit community in the school, but its design was also optimized for the wider community. Many areas, such as the gym, cafeteria, music room, stage and library, were designed to be used by the wider community after-hours.

Built on a former brownfield site where a garage once stood, the project helped to remediate the land by removing lead-contaminated soils. Further efforts were made to restore the natural areas and provide diversity and habitat for local species. For the LEED Protect or Restore Habitat credit, the project team was able to confirm that 90.96 per cent of the existing green field area was protected from any disturbance and that 41 per cent of the previously disturbed site area was restored.

The site also includes a bus loading zone, parent dropoff zone, and staff and visitor parking designed with safety in mind. To encourage active lifestyles, the site also includes pedestrian and cyclist sidewalks and pathways, bicycle racks, a multi-sport playfield, an outdoor classroom, and a play area for playground equipment.