Holy Cross School
By: Jennifer Walker-Journey

Surrounded by majestic oaks on a former riverfront plantation, Holy Cross School stood as a landmark in the New Orleans Lower 9th Ward. Established in 1849, the Catholic college preparatory school had a long history of providing young men with a premiere education. Holy Cross has endured much in its 160-year history in New Orleans, from yellow fever and malaria epidemics to the violence of the Civil War. But the campus stood strong over the years.

Then came Hurricane Katrina. The August 2005 hurricane that made land along the Gulf Coast was the costliest natural disaster and one of the five deadliest hurricanes in the history of the United States. The storm’s surge caused the New Orleans levee system to fail, which left 80 percent of the city and large tracts of neighboring parishes several feet under water. One of the most flooded areas of the Southern town was the 9th Ward District, and the location of the historic campus of Holy Cross School.

Every building was flooded with 5 to 8 feet of water. The school sustained $18 million worth of damage from flooding, wind and rain. The entire campus needed to be rebuilt. The school moved classes to The Dunham School in Baton Rouge, then moved back to New Orleans and held classes at night at Cabrini High School. Eventually modular units were placed on the old campus as the leadership of Holy Cross considered whether to rebuild, and if so, where.

In order to continue the mission of Holy Cross in the New Orleans area, the brothers of the Congregation of Holy Cross and the board of directors selected a site in Gentilly to relocate the campus.”

The new site covered 20 acres of property about 10 miles from its former location. While the school was entering a new chapter in its history, school leadership wanted somehow to retain the feel of its former campus. To carry out this mission, two architecture firms were hired – Blitch/Knevel Architects from New Orleans, and Broadmoor Design Group based in Metairie, Louisiana. Blitch/Knevel president Ronald Blitch and Broadmoore Design Group president Dean Duplantier were both graduates of Holy Cross School.

The Holy Cross Board of Directors communicated to the architects that the new campus should capture the architectural character of their historic campus while considering its detailed program for the 1,000-student campus. Middle school and high school buildings were to have strong individual identities while and eighth grade center in the administration building was to serve as a “bridge” between the younger and older students.

The architects designed a master plan to meet the board’s needs that could be built in phases. The first buildings would include a high school, middle school and administration building for a total square footage of 99,530. The three buildings were also connected by more than 15,600 square feet of covered walkways to enable the staff and students to move barrier-free between the educational spaces without returning to the ground level, about five feet below.

Architects used many elements from the historical Administration Building on the 9th Ward campus to help evoke the character of the new campus, including window design, a bell tower, and elaborate brick detailing. Architects also focused on long-term sustainability and efficiency, using many “LEED-equivalent” features. Interior spaces were also elevated above the “base-flood-elevation.”

Construction on the buildings began in January 2008, and the school moved the students to modular units on the new site. Special safety provisions were developed to allow heavy construction activities and deliveries in areas that neighbored the site and to keep students out of harm’s way. While difficult at times, focus was on the completed project. Despite a crippled construction industry rebounding from both the disaster and the almost-impossible demand for damage assessment and repair projects for a large portion of the city, the project was fast-tracked for completion. By August 2009, the high school and middle school buildings were opened. Five months later, the Administration Building was completed. The school officially dedicated its campus on March 20, 2010.

The campus design has also received high honors from more than just faculty, staff and students. The masonry work recently received a Gold Award in the K-12 category in a yearly competition sponsored by the Brick Institute of America. Only two other projects nationally received this honor.

The school is also currently working on another phase of its master plan, a 2,200-seat student center/gymnasium slated to open January 2011. This building includes areas for a Robotics Lab, specialized music education areas, a Fitness Center, The Huddle (a traditional snack bar), and specialized athletic spaces for the basketball and wrestling programs. Future plans include a chapel/cafeteria building, a performing arts building, and a natatorium addition to the student center.

Blitch/Knevel Architects: www.blitchknevel.com
Broadmoor Design Group: www.broadmoordesigngroup.com