Brooklyn, NY
NYC School Construction Authority
25,300 sf
Famed as the school in the 1975 TV sitcom “Welcome Back, Kotter,” New Utrecht High School in Bensonhurst had reached its physical limits with 3,200 students. To increase capacity, we designed a new 25,300sf, two-story addition that reshaped the L-shaped building into a square.
Commissioned under our term contract with the NYC School Construction Authority, the new structure created a 700-seat cafeteria to replace the existing refectory and kitchen, added new classrooms, provided air conditioning for the auditorium, and modernized building systems. Construction cost was approximately $26 million.
The school also gained a new entrance. A new corridor between the existing building and our addition creates an internal “main street”. The exterior wall of the original building efficiently became one side of the new corridor.
Field measurement ensured a proper integration of the old and new. A cost-effective program resulted from extensive meetings with the principal, her staff, and SCA representatives – not to mention the very engaged local School Board. Our field representatives remained on the site throughout construction to monitor construction accuracy and quality.
The new building was already in use before COVID shut down face-to-face education, but the parking lot, landscaping, and administrative sign-off couldn’t occur. In 2024, Helpern Architects returned to complete the project.
