Buffalo Promise Neighborhood Children’s Academy

Buffalo Promise Neighborhood provides a continuum of solutions for both children and families by streamlining family services, neighborhood resources and improving educational supports for children from birth through college to career and beyond.  The new 12,300 square foot Early Childhood Education Center serves as the cornerstone of the Neighborhood and is the first step on the path to educational success, providing an inviting and nurturing learning environment for 150 neighborhood children from infancy through to age five.  

The Center's design connects children with the Buffalo Promise Neighborhood community.  Large, playfully-colored windows on the street connect children with the city, while classrooms offer direct views and openings to the play yard, linking children to nature.  

To meet the owner's aggressive schedule and budget constraints, Watts explored different construction solutions before selecting a pre-engineered building system.  The project was fast-tracked to ensure that the Center was licensed and open at the start of the new school year. 

The use of BIM (Building Information Modeling) allowed for the precise coordination required to facilitate the fast-tracked schedule. Initial coordination with the pre-engineered building manufacturer was key in allowing the remainder of the design work to flow as smoothly as possible. The BIM process also presented the opportunity to create photo realistic renderings to track material choices and visualization of the end product.

Watts provided full architecture and engineering services for the project.