The Central Okanagan School District’s office will soon relocate to Hollywood Road in Rutland.
The school district is in the process of selling its property on Dilworth Drive, which is currenlty used for administrative operations and meetings, so it can move into a soon-to-be-constructed new, larger office space on Hollywood Road.
“This is something the school district has been working on for a number of years,” said Coun. Gail Given, Monday, when plans for the new space were shown to city council so it could approve the necessary development permits.
The new building will be a 125,000-square-foot, two-storey, office complex, set north of the Hollywood Road Education Services building.
The move will not only offer new space, but also an aesthetic upgrade from the 1970’s era building that the school district offcies are now housed in.
In the mock-up of the new building shown to council, the district proposes a two-floor office building with associated parking and landscaping.
“The proposed building design will be flush with the existing building along the Hollywood frontage and use the existing building entrance,” says a staff report to council.
The site layout includes parking along the front and sides of the building. Traditionally, city policies recommend that parking be kept to the rear. However, in this instance, staff support the front parking as a means of preserving as much of the green space behind the building as possible.
“The applicant has opted to add visual interest and depth to the building design through the use of a non- traditional colour scheme and mixed materials,” the report continues.
“The lower floors along the windows will be clad in stone, providing a visual anchor between the building and the ground below. The southern portion of the addition will be in red, creating a visual focal point off of Hollywood Road.”
The property currently used bythe school district administration on Dilworth was listed for $6.5 million.