Advanced education facility will fully support Calaveras Hills High School
Milpitas, Calif,. Sept. 25, 2024 – Along with the Milpitas Unified School District (MUSD), Blach Construction (Blach) and Quattrocchi Kwok Architects (QKA), as well as community partners, members and supporters, recently celebrated the completion of Phase Two of the MUSD Innovation Campus. A first-of-its-kind education and workforce development center, the MUSD Innovation Campus is providing future-ready learners with a variety of educational and training opportunities that translate into sustainable careers.
“Completing the second phase of the MUSD Innovation Campus is another important step in enhancing public education in our community – the gateway to Silicon Valley,” said MUSD Superintendent Cheryl Jordan. “Not only have Blach and QKA been a pleasure to work with on a day-to-day basis, their Folia solution has more than met our requirements by providing a wide range of flexible learning environments that can evolve over time as needed. They have helped turn this unique concept into reality.”
Erected using Folia, a flexible, durable, prefabricated classroom building solution exclusive only to Blach, QKA and GPLA Structural Engineers and Builders, this phase of the MUSD Innovation Campus included the construction of two new, L-shaped classroom buildings surrounding a central courtyard. These will serve as a permanent home to Calaveras Hills High School (CHHS), enabling the alternative school to expand its program offerings. Additionally, an existing building was modernized to provide Career Technical Education (CTE) lab space for robotics and advanced manufacturing courses.
“Similar to Phase One of this project, our design team was focused on adding other, complementary state-of-the-art, flexible learning environments for MUSD,” said QKA President Aaron Jobson. “Keeping students and staff at the forefront, we were able to leverage our strong partnership with Blach to swiftly and successfully complete this second phase and create a lasting home for Calaveras Hills.”
Phase Two’s new and modernized buildings come on the heels of the first four Folia buildings that were delivered in Phase One of the project. Fully operational since August 2023, the initial buildings house the MUSD District Office, the MUSD Adult School and the Milpitas High School Extension at the MUSD Innovation Campus. Collectively, all seven buildings feature a variety of science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) classrooms and labs, career development spaces, administrative offices and conference rooms, independent study spaces and multiple indoor and outdoor collaboration areas. Exclusive to Phase Two are a recording studio, an e-sports lab, a flexible space for independent study programs, three science labs and an art studio.
Based on the efficiencies and enhanced safety inherent to the prefabricated Folia solution, both phases of the MUSD Innovation Campus were delivered seamlessly on the occupied campus in just two years, despite record rainfall and supply chain issues. Folia also supports the project’s sustainability goals, which include Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS) certification and renewable power supplied by MUSD’s existing photovoltaic system. Each building includes sustainable materials, energy efficient lighting, all-electric mechanical systems, stormwater catchment and water-efficient landscaping.
“It is extremely gratifying to have completed two phases of such a significant, community-enhancing project in the span of two years,” said Brad Fannin, project executive at Blach. “The dedication and collaboration of our combined project teams were instrumental in overcoming supply chain bottlenecks and a very wet winter. Overall, our joint efforts have resulted in state-of-the-art facilities that MUSD and the Milpitas community will benefit from for years to come.”
Funding for the first two phases of the $90 million, nearly 100,000-sq.ft. MUSD Innovation Campus was made possible by the 2018 Bond Measure AA and California state-matching grants. With Phases One and Two now complete, MUSD is planning to add a third and final phase, which will include a Workforce Development Center and Early Childhood Education Research Center, achieving the vision for the campus to support Milpitas learners from early childhood through adulthood.
About MUSD Innovation Campus
Through partnerships with community colleges and universities, as well as local businesses, MUSD Innovation Campus is intended to provide training and education that support growing and emerging career fields and practical career simulation. Once complete, the campus will comprise myriad classrooms, STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) labs, a Learning Hub and support spaces that accommodate a wide variety of programming for Milpitas students of all ages. Specific curriculum will include adult education, business entrepreneurship, robotics, biology, virtual reality, AV production, coding, artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer science and virtual design and construction, as well as simulation for legal, financial, manufacturing and health career training.
Specifically, it will provide dedicated space for the MUSD District Office, Adult School and Calaveras Hills High School. Also, facilities have been designated as the MHS Extension, to both support the growth of its CTE and ECE programs and relieve overcrowding on the high school’s main campus. Furthermore, the MUSD Innovation Campus will flexibly accommodate learning programs provided by partner educational institutions and businesses dedicated to continuous training and development.
About Blach Construction
Founded in 1970, Blach Construction builds structures of enduring quality and value throughout California. The firm’s experience encompasses a broad cross section of education, housing, institutional, mixed-use and workplace building types, translating into a diverse portfolio that includes civic/community, healthcare, K-12 and higher education, hospitality, life sciences, professional services and technology facilities, as well as affordable, supportive and market-rate housing developments. With fluency in traditional and collaborative delivery methods – and true to their Silicon Valley roots – Blach continually incorporates advanced, innovative construction techniques, leveraging in-house prefabrication, self-perform and virtual design, and construction expertise to offer greater efficiencies to projects and increased value to clients.
The firm consistently wins awards across the construction industry and general business community for projects, innovation, employee engagement and community service. Quality and safety are at Blach’s core. As a result, the company is continually ranked as a “Top Contractor in California” by Engineering News-Record and has received multiple “Construction Safety Excellence Awards” from the Associated General Contractors of California. Additionally, and as a testament to its company culture, Blach has been recognized repeatedly since 2009 as a “Best Place to Work” in the Bay Area by the Silicon Valley Business Journal/San Francisco Business Times.
Blach is headquartered in San Jose with offices in Monterey and Southern California. To learn more, please visit blach.com and engage via LinkedIn.
