Alton Shared Facility Project
New community campus in Alton:
Construction to begin on high school, library, community centre, sports fields and community park
The Halton District School Board, the Burlington Public Library and the City of Burlington are getting ready to begin construction on the Alton High School, Library and Community Centre and Norton Community Park Campus. The three groups have formed a partnership with construction of the project scheduled to begin late this summer and to be completed in September 2013.
This shared Alton facility will include four competition-sized double gyms, a three-storey high school with a 200-seat auditorium, and a shared 11,840 square-foot (1,110 square metre) integrated library which will be used by the public and the high school, with flexible classroom and public meeting space.
The Halton District School Board has awarded the contract to build a shared high school, public library and community centre facility in Burlington's Alton community to Bondfield Construction of Concord, Ontario.
The joint facility will cost about $40.2 million, to be shared by each of the partners - City of Burlington, Burlington Public Library, and the Halton District School Board. Site preparation will begin immediately, with the official groundbreaking anticipated for September 2011. The architect for the project is Svedas Architect Inc. of Burlington.
Representatives from the school board, Burlington Public Library and City of Burlington signed a three-party agreement August 17, 2011, at Burlington City Hall to move forward with the project.
The Alton community campus stands out among other community projects because of its unique integrated design that combines three different partners, a three-storey public high school, a community library and a public community centre. The campus will also include the Norton Community Park on the east side of Tim Dobbie Drive.
By combining these facilities and sharing resources, the school board, the library and the city are able to reduce the overall design and construction costs while providing important services to the community.
The high school
The high school will be 147,069 square-foot (13,663 square-metre)and is expected to house 1,500 students who will have access to the community centre's athletic facilities. The community will have use of the high school's three gymnasiums during evenings and weekends. The yet-to-be-named high school will become a destination for local amateur sports with its lit, artificial turf sports field, surrounded by an eight-lane track and spectator seating.
The library
The Burlington Public Library branch will combine with the school board's library to create an 11,840 aggregate square-foot (1,100 aggregate square-metre) joint integrated library that serves both students and the community. The library's design provides for multi-generational use and includes flexible space that will take full advantage of new and emerging information technology.
The community centre and park
Alton Community Centre is located on the west side of Tim Dobbie Drive. The building will be 53,886 square-foot (5,006 square-metre). Directly across the road, Norton Community Park will feature two lit artificial turf sports fields, a water feature, an outdoor multi-use sports court, a playground, a skate park, an open air pavilion and washrooms. In partnership with Burlington Hydro, the complex will support a rooftop solar system, which will feed energy back into the city's power grid system..
The two parts of the campus will be integrated with Tim Dobbie Drive. The road will be designed with features to compliment the urban design and entry into the campus area as well as provide some traffic calming in the area that provides for the movement of pedestrians between the two facilities.