TRENTON, NJ - Clarke Caton Hintz is pleased to announce that the Roebling School has won a 2004 New Jersey Future Smart Growth Award. New Jersey Future is the state's largest smart-growth advocacy group. It is a nonprofit organization which is leading the fight for better-managed growth under the State Plan, and for sustainable development: a strong economy, a healthy natural environment and a just society for present and future generations. The Smart Growth Awards honor town officials, developers and corporations for outstanding work that promotes the healthy growth of New Jersey communities, and so strengthens the prosperity and future of New Jersey.

The Roebling School is a new 1,200 student Pre-Kindergarten to 8th grade school in Trenton, New Jersey. As an urban center, Trenton does not have enough open space to build a new school of this scale, so the Trenton Public Schools in concert with the New Jersey Schools Construction Corporation decided to utilize a largely abandoned block of industrial buildings in the historic Roebling complex for this facility. The Roebling complex was created to produce steel wire rope used in suspension bridges (most notably the Brooklyn Bridge in New York and the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco), elevators, and in early commercial aircraft. After almost 50 years of neglect, the Roebling complex has been transformed into a catalyst for Trenton's revitalization and growth. The function of the renewed complex includes an arena, senior housing, museums, shops, offices, high-tech entertainment studios, a transportation hub, and now high-quality public education.

The Roebling School will inhabit roughly 220,000 SF of renovated and new construction on a 6.5 acre lot. The historically significant structures on the site will be saved and incorporated for the school and the insignificant shed structures will be demolished to create appropriate spaces for courtyards, parking, and playgrounds. A gymnasium addition will be centrally located to serve all of the students at the school and will be oriented for after hours use by community groups. The Pre-Kindergarten classrooms will be located in building 52 while Kindergarten through 5th grades will be housed in the renovated building 54, a massive 96,000 SF building dated 1924. Building 54 was a prototypical industrial building that maximized the amount of glazing at the exterior walls and brought even more natural light in through roof monitors (skylights). Recent studies prove that larger windows produced measurable improvements in test scores, attendance, and general morale at the school, making building 54 an ideal setting for classrooms. The older students (grades 6-8) will be located in buildings 58 and 62 but connected to the main building by a series of glass-enclosed links. These buildings were built in the late 19th century and typically have large arched windows at the exterior walls. In addition to the educational use of the site, the Trenton School District plans to utilize the two remaining buildings for administrative space and the City of Trenton plans to build a children's museum on an adjacent lot.