West Charlotte High School

West Charlotte High School, a part of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in Charlotte, North Carolina, was established in 1938 and has undergone many additions and renovations since. The existing campus is composed of multiple buildings that require the students to frequently walk outdoors throughout the day to get to their classes, creating a safety concern for the students.

It was decided to build a new facility on campus to replace all of the existing buildings, during which the original high school campus would be in use. CMTA was selected to design the mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection engineering, as well as security services (intrusion, access control, cameras) for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools’ onsite demolition and construction. Constructing the new facility while the campus is in use will have many challenges. It will require numerous phases to ensure all utilities are maintained, and most importantly, ensure the safety of the students and staff.

Replacing the 15-building campus with one school, the 338,519 square foot, three-story replacement school will have a state-of-the-art cafeteria and child nutrition center, general classrooms, science classrooms, instrumental music spaces, vocal music spaces, theater arts, visual arts, career and technical education, JROTC, administration, student services, staff support, media center, a natatorium with a 25 meter, eight-lane pool, physical education/athletics spaces, full auditorium, and football stadium.