St. Augustine High School

Unitas, Vertias, Caritas; Unity, Truth and Love.  These are the calls to action of the Mission Statement of St. Augustine High School, a 700 student all boy’s Catholic institution woven into the fabric of San Diego’s North Park neighborhood since 1923.  The school utilizes established athletic and arts programs to connect with boys and turn them into men.  These programs formed the architectural challenge of adding a 52,000 square foot, 1,500 seat sports facility to a tight site while maintaining the scale of North Park. The design pushes the majority of the bulk below grade, terraces back from the property boundary, reducing the scale, and creating a compatible neighborhood edge.

Outdoor practice areas borrow from Le Corbusier 5 points of a New Architecture that says a building should give back the space it takes up on the ground. As such, the rooftop has practice courts and multi-purpose areas. The edges are populated with “walk-off” programs that tie into the different grade levels.  Unitas; the project unifies the campus by ‘stitching’ together the various levels with stairways and ramps, as well as creating courtyards and gathering spaces.  Veritas; the project is honest in its construction, revealing its materials, structure and systems as expressive design elements.  Caritas; the project creates a large gathering space, combining the Commons (lobby) with a connected courtyard, making the heart of the campus, a center of worship, community and brotherhood fulfilling their missions.  #thebrotherhood