News at St. Catherine's
Times-Dispatch: St. Catherine's planning new building, underground parking deck for Grove Ave. campus
By SARAH KLEINER
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Richmond Times-Dispatch
St. Catherine’s School, an all-girls private school founded in 1890, is eying another expansion on its Grove Avenue campus in Richmond’s West End.
“In the midst of our 125th anniversary, we are given the opportunity to honor our past and to prepare for the future,” Terrie Hale Scheckelhoff, head of St. Catherine’s, said in an emailed statement. “We are in the beginning stages of addressing zoning that will enable the school to make enhancements on the existing campus footprint.”
The project likely would include a new building to house an Arts and Innovation Center, a turf field and a parking deck for 200 cars, Scheckelhoff said.
Christopher H. Williams, the chair of the St. Catherine’s board of governors, said the parking deck likely would be built underground and the field would sit on top of it, based on preliminary designs.
The turf field would accommodate soccer, lacrosse and field hockey, Williams said. The school also would continue to use athletics facilities in Goochland County.
As for the new arts facility, Scheckelhoff said the McVey Theatre, which was built in 1937, no longer fits the needs of the school.
“The arts program is very important to our girls and their families,” said Williams, who has two graduates of St. Catherine’s and one daughter currently attending. “I think this facility will take it to the next level.”
St. Catherine’s moved to the Grove Avenue campus in 1917.
Last week, the school invited parents to attend a meeting to discuss plans to “fully develop the underutilized back third of our campus.”
The Virginia-based architectural design firm Bartzen + Ball PLLC is designing the project. Details such as the cost, timeline and building square footage were not available, Scheckelhoff said. The school will need to raise money for the project.
St. Catherine’s conducted a fundraising campaign from 2008 to 2013 that raised $40.4 million. It resulted in more than 100,000 square feet of new and renovated space, the conversion of dormitory spaces for use as classrooms and learning areas, and a renovated and expanded dining hall.
Updates also were made to three historic buildings on campus, and science facilities were expanded.
Located in the heart of Richmond, Virginia, St. Catherine’s School is a private, all-girls pre-K, kindergarten, elementary, middle and high school. We provide a well-rounded educational experience for girls from communities across Richmond, Chesterfield, Henrico and all of central Virginia. St.Catherine’s all-girls educational experience is rooted in more than a century of history and tradition. From our revolutionary past to our dynamic present, St. Catherine’s has always focused on preparing students for a boundless future.
