MILLBROOK, NY – An iconic dairy barn-turned-student center at Millbrook School in the Hudson River Valley received both a Merit Award for Preservation from the American Institute of Architects’ Philadelphia Chapter, as well as a Palladio Award from Traditional Building magazine in 2014.  Constructed by Kirchhoff-Consigli Construction Management (KCCM) of Pleasant Valley, New York and designed by Voith & Mactavish Architects, LLP (VMA), of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the adaptive reuse of the circa 1930s dairy barn into a multi-purpose learning, sharing and entertainment hub provides Millbrook School’s 280 students a place to socialize and further their education outside of the classroom.

A college preparatory boarding school located on 800 acres of former farmland, Millbrook School expanded over the past decade, with the addition of new state-of-the-art facilities, including the pivotal renovation of The Barn, a favorite building on campus since the school’s inception in 1931.

The original Depression-era barn was repurposed to convert a shaky interior with no existing foundation into a sturdy, two-story building. The first floor includes a café, bookstore and student/teacher counseling area. The second floor multi-purpose space showcases the original woodwork. A loft used as a study hall and gaming room can easily be converted into a dance hall for special events. In addition, the project’s extensive sustainable features led to LEED Gold certification—an impressive 100% of the energy consumed at the Student Center is derived from renewable sources.