Civic leaders, designers, alumni, students, neighbors and even miniature horses celebrated the re-opening of Grant High School on September 7. A major modernization transformed the historic campus and buildings to the delight of visitors who marveled at the 21st Century learning environments behind the restored 1924 facade.
Thanks to removal of non-historic structures, the campus gained well-connected open spaces, a sports field expansion and seamless integration with the adjacent Grant Park. Grant is the third of Portland Public Schools‘ completed high school modernization projects, following Franklin and Roosevelt High Schools. Next up for construction are Madison, Lincoln and Benson High Schools.
Madison’s curriculum is unique in that it houses sustainable agriculture and environmental studies programs. The landscape architecture work at Madison encompasses site circulation, school and stadium entry plazas, internal courtyards, an agricultural area, a childcare playground and athletic facilities. The challenging forty-acre site that straddles the Alameda Ridge has over fifty feet of grade change. Mayer/Reed is working with the project team that includes 
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“The building and landscape work together to create a place of healing. They are elegant in their simplicity,” noted Julie Livingston, Portland Design Commission Chair. “The site plan organizes and makes sense of competing uses in a manner that improves the pedestrian environment and benefits both the new building and also the existing Casey Eye Institute.”