The design team at Voith & Mactavish Architects LLP had their work cut out for them when designing the new David L. Kurtz Center for the Performing Arts at the William Penn Charter School in Philadelphia, PA. The challenge was not only to create a facility that met the functional requirements of a performing arts center, but the architecture also had to be worthy of its prime location on campus. A mix of local stone contributed to the aesthetics of the LEED Gold-certified building.
“The Steeple building was built in the 1930s, and it is an iconic building on the William Penn Charter School’s campus,” explained Daniela Voith, AIA, LEED, IIDA of Voith & Mactavish Architects LLP in Philadelphia, PA. “It faces onto School House Road, and it [also] opens on to big expansive playing fields, so it is a very important and prominent elevation. When we were given the site directly adjacent to the main building, we were challenged with the concept of designing a building that would complement this iconic building.