The Samohi Discovery Building is nearing completion, finishing final touches on the exterior, courtyard walls, elevator installation, and the pool.

Recent accomplishments include:

• Both internal elevators are now being used for construction and the man-lift removed
• The kitchen interior is complete, with the exception of the ceilings and lights  
• The underground utilities on the west side have been installed, including the final water connection
• Most of the paving on the south side of the building has been completed
• Work on the courtyard paving and the hardscape on the east side of the building is progressing on schedule

 

Business Building Repurpose

This is several projects in 1 to enable the development of the next phase of the campus plan:

• Business building 1st Floor repurpose to create spaces for the pilot Programs that will move into Exploration when it’s ready in 2023.  
• Business building 2nd Floor repurpose to create spaces for some of the Art program, to allow for the demo of Art building.  
• Conversion of the existing Book Distribution in Admin into an Art Gallery.  
• Installing a new transformer into English to provide power to buildings, once the transformer in History is removed.  

 

 

 

Aerial view of the site plan for areas to be abated and demolished, shown in orange. 

Cafeteria

The kitchen at JAMS is being prepared to accommodate all catering requirements for the Santa Monica schools. The operating kitchen will be temporarily moved from Samohi to JAMS over Spring Break and fully functional by school returns in April. The cafeteria will return to Samohi Discovery Building this fall. Demolition of the entire building will be complete by mid-June when school closes for Summer Break.

History Building

Moving out of History is a big undertaking and is planned to begin on June 12, 2021. This will include moving all instructional materials, furniture, electronic equipment, networking equipment, fire-alarm system, etc. Abatement is scheduled to commence on June 16 and will be completed by mid-July, which will signal the start of demolition. Most of the classes in History will be relocated into the Discovery Building. The objective is to completely demolish the building and haul away as much of the debris for recycling by the end of the summer to minimize impacts to classrooms nearby.

Art Building

The move out of Art will follow shortly after the move out of History. The Art Building will be relocated into Business Building and into the Interim Classrooms on the tennis courts. The abatement and demolition schedule of the Art Building will closely follow the History Building demolition schedule.

Drake Pool

Drake Pool will be abated and demolished concurrently with the demolition of the History Building. Demoloishment will require the track and field to close for a period due to the proximity to the construction zone. The new Pool in Discovery is scheduled to open during the Summer Break.

Rendering of Samohi with Exploration and Gold's Gym.

Discovery Building

 

The exterior of the building is nearing completion on the whole building with the exception of the courtyard and the two stairwells on the western side. Work on the floor is progressing well enough in some areas to enable some of the following trades to start, including the installation of internal walls, creating classrooms. Finishing work in restrooms on all levels has progressed well, which will allow for the installation of fixtures to begin next week. 

  

Library Refresh

The library is now complete! The new furniture has been installed and books and equipment have been moved back and the shelves have been stacked. All IT hardware has been hooked up and is now functional

The library is looking great!

 

 

Football Field Replacement

The football field is complete and ready to be used. We can't wait for students to enjoy this beautiful field once we are able to get back to playing sports!

 

 

Phase 3

 

Abatement and demolition of the Cafeteria, Pool, History and Art buildings is scheduled to start in June 2021 and construction of the new building will begin in January 2022.

 

Business Building reconfiguration

The Business building re-purpose is currently out to bid. This building will be used for some of Art and to launch the new programs, all of which will be housed in the Exploration Building, once complete in the fall of 2023.

The new Academies will include: Project Lead the Way Engineering; Law, Justice, and Policy; Sports Medicine, Health, and Wellness; and Digital Media.

Although the schedule is for the work to begin in June 2021, we want to take full advantage of the available time, should in-person classes not begin until the fall. That means that we will be in a position to begin construction in April, if that opportunity becomes a reality. In theory, work should not start on the buildings until Discovery is available for occupation next summer

 

Art Gallery

The existing Textbook Office, located in the lower level of the Admin Building will be converted into the new Roberts Art Gallery. This project is also currently out to bid.

Discovery is on track to accommodate the new Distribution Center in the new building by May, which will free up the space for the construction of the new art gallery at that time

 

Signage 

The new Michigan Gate signage is complete and makes for a beautiful entrance to the school.

The Discovery Building is coming together quickly. The exterior is nearly complete and many crews are working to build and finish interior spaces. Meanwhile, the pool is being built and the athletic field has been replaced. Take a look in these photos.

The Discovery Building project hit a milestone when contractors were able to remove the tower crane that had been a feature of the Santa Monica skyline for more than a year.

The crane is no longer needed because major structural pieces and mechanical equipment (like air handlers on the roof) have now been installed. 

There is exterior work to be done still, but the majority of the effort now is on the interior: Ensuring electrical and plumbing are working properly and making classrooms look like classrooms, labs like labs, etc.

With students distance learning, much of the site work, such as the Science Quad area, was able to be moved up to be completed early.

The project is on schedule for the building to be occupied during the summer of 2021.

Meanwhile, the district is working with designers to plan Phase 3 of the Samohi Campus Plan. Among other things, it would include a new gym and a new classroom building that would contain a "pitch space" (above) where students could learn entrepreneurial skills that could drive startups in the future.

The library is being refreshed with new furniture, shelving and equipment. The contract has been approved and design finalized. The district is working to acquire furniture, and the aim is to have everything moved back in so the library is ready for use in January 2021