Intermediate School 230Q Annex is a four-story building developed to relieve overcrowding in the existing middle school located across the street.  The project’s site is included in the Jackson Heights Historic District, a residential neighborhood built in the first half of the last century and noted for its garden apartments featuring historically-based facade elements and simple decorative brickwork.  The goal was to design a contemporary, comfortable academic environment for both students and teachers while seamlessly introducing the new structure into its protected architectural setting.

In plan, the Annex maximizes the area of its lot to gain the most educational program area possible for the growing community.  To reduce the bulk of the building’s shape, the main entrance is accentuated by a striped coursing pattern and is set back from the street corner to provide a sheltered well-lit area away from the street.  Above the first floor, the building is offset to align with the adjacent building to the north.  The three-dimensional texture of the brick patterns and cast stone elements visually break up the mass of the building and are combined and detailed in a contemporary adaptation of the architectural ornamentation found throughout the neighborhood.