This new middle school for 1500 students in grades 6-8 was built on the same campus as the original school, a congested property surrounded by residences and a municipal building. Hence, careful planning was undertaken to minimize impact on the homes, ensure a safe, operable condition during construction, and produce a functionally ideal outcome with dedicated baseball/softball, soccer, and football fields. A highlight of the new building is a multi-story innovation commons – ringed by art, technology, and science classrooms – that provides a collaborative indoor/outdoor work space via access to the courtyard. Other elements include a linked competition/auxiliary gym that can be configured as a single 3-station space and a music suite with separate band, orchestra, and choral rooms.