Rebuilding Albany High School
Investing in our students. Investing in our community. Investing in our future.
Construction began in 2018 on a $179.9 million project to renovate and expand Albany High School. The project will add more than 250,000 square feet of new facilities and completely renovate the existing 378,000-square-foot complex. The project will expand the school's capacity to about 3,000 students; Albany High enrolls about 2,500 students currently and has run out of space to add new classrooms.
The project will be completed in four phases and is scheduled for completion in 2025.
In April 2018, new construction began including a three-story academic building behind the school as the major element of Phase 1, which is scheduled to be completed in February 2020. Construction is also under way on Phase 2, including a new building for art and music classrooms, which is expected to be completed in fall 2020. The school’s open courtyard also will be enclosed in subsequent phases.
Renovations throughout the seven-year project will include a complete makeover of the current three-story academic wing, which will include space for career and technical education programs currently housed three blocks away at Abrookin Career and Technical Center.
Other renovations will include completely replacing the school’s heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, adding a new 200-seat balcony to the auditorium and creating new space for physical-education classes, including jogging lanes in the main gym.
The fully renovated and rebuilt facility will expand the size of the current building by about 50 percent. Today’s Albany High building, including Abrookin, encompasses about 378,000 square feet; the new and improved Albany High will add about 250,000 square feet of new space.
Phase 1
Phase 1 began in April 2018 and was completed in January 2020. It consists primarily of a new three-story, 120,000-square-foot academic building in back of our school.
Phase 1 also included a new mechanical building in an area behind the auditorium and adjacent to the old Washington Avenue parking lot.
Phase 2
Phase 2 construction began in June 2019 and was completed in January 2021. The new two-story, 39,000-square-foot classroom building, extending east from the auditorium toward the athletic field, is home to art and music classrooms.
Music section
The music addition contains six music classrooms. Three are large rehearsal classrooms for band, orchestra and chorus, and each of the three includes two small practice rooms. Each rehearsal space is acoustically designed to meet the specific needs of the classroom. The rehearsal rooms also feature recording and playback systems with microphones and speakers. The band and orchestra rooms contain instrument storage space, as well.
The music addition also contains a MIDI computer lab, a recording studio with booth, and one ensemble practice room.
Art section
The art addition contains six art classrooms: three Studio Art classroom, two 3D Art classrooms and one 2D Art classroom. All rooms contain expansive glazing and daylight. Each has a variety of storage options and an external faculty storage room/work area, in addition to celing-suspended elected power reels. All the Studio Art classrooms feature a large pin-up and presentation wall, and the 2D art classroom includes a paint spray booth.
The video below features students and staff discussing what this historic new addition means to them, and to the Albany High community.
Phases 3 and 4
The final two phases will include renovation of the auditorium, including the addition of a balcony, the enclosure of the courtyard, and a complete renovation of the current academic building to accommodate four academies on the top two floors and Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs on the first floor.
The full project is scheduled to be finished in the fall of 2025.
While Albany High is moving through the daily and weekly routines of the school year, there is a lot going on as construction progresses on Phase 3. To keep you updated on the progress, we are instituting project updates along with other periodic updates on construction and planning.
- Phase 3 update and photos, May 2021
- Board of Education report, March 2021
- Board of Education report, December 2020
- Board of Education report, September 2020
- Phase 3 update, June 2020
- Board of Education report, June 2020
- Board of Education report, March 2020
- Phase 1 complete, February 2020
- Update for families, January 2020
- Board of Education report, December 2019
- Board of Education report, September 2019
- Board of Education report, May 2019
- Update for families, February 2019
- Board of Education report, January 2019
- Update for families, December 2018
- Abatement projects, December 2018
- Update for families, November 2018
- Update for families, October 2018
- Board of Education report, September 2018
Workforce Development
As a district, we are committed to helping City of Albany residents, and especially residents of color, acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to work on the Albany High rebuild, as well as other construction-related jobs throughout our community and region. We are also committed to helping minority- and woman-owned businesses enterprises (MWBEs) be positioned to take advantage of these opportunities.
Wth these goals in mind, we have developed a workforce development website, which we encourage you to visit.
