Joliet Central High School
Joliet
Joliet Central High School Student Center Addition is the recipient of Landmarks Illinois’ 2017 Richard H. Driehaus Foundation Preservation Award for Rehabilitation. Facing several significant functional and accessibility-related issues, the school resolved to add a new student center, dining facility, multi-purpose areas and elevators to the original 1901 school building. The major challenge was designing a functionally modern building that was architecturally sensitive to the existing building’s design, while still emphasizing its distinctiveness from the original structure. Located at 300 Caterpillar Drive, the new space provides students with new amenities and spaces that foster learning, collaboration and accessibility for everyone. This modern and engaging space, which did not compromise the original structure and respected the historic details of the highly significant and much-loved 1901 school building, now serves as a point of pride for students and the broader community.
The team responsible for this project includes: Joliet Township High School District 204, Wright & Company, Brush Architects, Gilbane Building Company, JSL Masonry Restoration and A-One Group.