Brennan Consulting tackles new 285,000 s/f Tri County Regional Technical Vocational High School

Franklin, MA Brennan Consulting, Inc., a privately owned WBE Certified company in Burlington, Mass., is working with Consigli Construction on the new Tri County Regional Technical Vocational High School located at 147 Pond St.

The existing 285,000 s/f vocational school, originally constructed in 1977, supports the 11 Commonwealth communities of Franklin, Medway, Medfield, Millis, Norfolk, North Attleboro, Plainville, Seekonk, Sherborn, Walpole, and Wrentham and has surpassed its 50-year life expectancy. To address aging structural, MEP, and code compliance issues, a new $285,992,692 facility is due to break ground on the 60.5-acre parcel and will be primarily sited at the dismantled solar field behind the existing building. Design development plans were submitted in May for local board approval and construction is anticipated to commence this fall, with blasting scheduled shortly thereafter.

The proposed 280,000 s/f compact design housing 16 vocational programs has a capacity of 1,000 students and will open in the summer of 2027. Net zero, solar arrays, and energy efficient floor plans and façades are on track to bring the school into the 21^st century. To enhance learning, shared core spaces such as a multi-story Student Commons and cafeteria, as well as a large courtyard, are separate from the learning areas in a dynamic building design. According to DRA Architects, the career and technical education shops and academic classrooms are organized in clusters by career, and the culinary, cosmetology, early childhood, and nursing spaces have a dedicated entrance for customers, as well as an entrance for post-secondary vocational programs. High bay shops, a gymnasium, restaurant, salon, and a multi-use auditorium are embraced in the proposed structure as well as flex space for a potential Freshman academy. Multi-use athletic fields and associated parking, lighting, stormwater drainage, and utilities are included in the site design.

“In the northeast, technical and career education programs are experiencing a surge in popularity. Driven by rising tuition costs and a pressing labor shortage, these programs offer students alternative pathways to rewarding careers and better prepare them for the future workforce,” said Laureen Poulakis, president of Brennan. “We’re thrilled to work with Consigli on this new state-of-the-art vocational high school and look forward to seeing the skills gap close in the future.”

School projects underway at Brennan include the $167 million Pickering Middle School, Lynn and the $242 million Nashoba Regional High School, Bolton, both with Consigli Construction, and the $273 million Wakefield Memorial High School with BOND Building Construction. Services provided on these and on the Tri County Voke include:

• Pre-construction/existing conditions surveys - sites, buildings, roads & bridges;

• Cross-section & volume surveys - lines & structures;

• Monitoring wells - layout & location - utility location & layout;

• Precise deformation monitoring - quantity take offs;

• Line & grade - topographic & detail surveys;

• Pile driving layout - traverse/horizontal control;

• Foundation layout - vertical control;

• Anchor bolt/column layout - as built/as constructed surveys.