Castilleja Reimagined

Modernize Campus and Increase Enrollment

Castilleja School was founded in 1907 in Palo Alto with a mission to equalize educational opportunities for women. Since then, our school has been serving Palo Alto and neighboring communities, becoming deeply embedded in the community through a long history of engagement—working with esteemed groups such as Ada’s Café, the Palo Alto VA Hospital, and the Boys and Girls Club. We are proud to call Palo Alto home.

Many of the buildings on our campus have not been renovated since the 1960s, so we are seeking permission to build new learning spaces that will last for generations while better integrating with the aesthetic of the neighborhood. In order to offer this unique educational opportunity to more girls and young women, we also hope to gradually increase our high school enrollment by 25-27 students per year until our total school enrollment is 540. We will increase our Traffic Demand Management measures at the same time to assure that daily car trips to campus do not increase. 

Our new Master Plan creates sustainable, energy efficient spaces, minimizes the impact on our surrounding neighbors, and blends into the neighborhood aesthetic. We are delighted that the initial environmental review of our project found it to be 100% compliant with Palo Alto’s Comprehensive Plan, the City’s guiding tool for preservation and development. Throughout this process we have made revisions to our plans,  including a new Project Alternative with a scaled down garage that preserves trees and housing and took into account feedback from our neighbors and the City to make improvements. Please read about them in detail here.

SURPASS PALO ALTO'S SUSTAINABILITY GOALS AND  LEED PLATINUM ENVIRONMENTAL MEASURES WITH:

  • Energy efficiency - on-site solar, heat recovery, renewable credits
  • Water conservation and reuse
  • Fossil fuel free - outside of science lab

 

NEW DESIGN IS MORE COMPATIBLE WITH THE SURROUNDING NEIGHBORHOOD:

  • Materials blend with residential feel of neighborhood
  • Overall height and setbacks are equal to or less than existing structures
  • Proactive noise mitigations will reduce the school’s neighborhood impact (e.g., moving the swimming pool below grade, limiting events on weekdays to before 8pm, eliminating events on Sundays).

PRESERVES NEIGHBORHOOD FEEL