Oregon City Schools, Clay Performing Arts Studio
Type of Construction
General Contracting
Square Footage
5,677
Construction Cost
$1,556,879
In 2021, The Oregon City Schools Board of Education approved the construction of the Performing Arts Studio capital project located at Clay High School. The project remodeled an existing 4,000 sf warehouse building into the facility, which includes a multi-purpose dance and rehearsal studio, recording studio for music production, multi-purpose vestibule, dressing rooms, restrooms and storage space. An additional 1,000 sf storage and set design space was also added to the back of the facility.
Discussion and planning for the remodel began in 2019 when the Performing Arts program was integrated into the Career & Technology Department. With this expanded space, experiences in dance and recording would be available, allowing improved student preparation and artistic development. Students who want to pursue a career in the arts would now have a more comprehensive educational program and technical training upon completion of high school and the Clay arts program, per Superintendent Hal Gregory.
Prior to the renovation, the structure was an old bus garage that had sat vacant for years other than its use for storage. The façade of the building presented significant design challenges to create a weathertight building, as well as major structural modifications that would have to be completed on the interior to allow for the desired programming. To solve these challenges, the existing façade was repaired and then a rainscreen system was installed over the upper portion of the building as well as a thin brick veneer wainscot to match adjacent buildings on the campus. Additionally, the main column line in the building was relocated to allow for the larger spaces such as dance studio and performance lobby. Lastly, a storage and set design addition was added on the building to allow for maximum use of the existing space for desired programming. This project epitomizes the idea of adaptive reuse. It would have been easy to demolish the building and build new, but instead the design team and owner were able to preserve a piece of history from the site and convert it into state-of-the-art facilities that provide endless opportunities to not only the students, but community members.
