YEAR_  2008

SIZE_  18,000 SF

TYPE_  CIVIC

Founded in 1929 by the wife of the minister of the adjacent Trinity Presbyterian Church, the Happy Workers Children’s Center has been serving the surrounding predominately African-American community of south St. Petersburg for over 80 years. The project entails the multi-phase construction of a new campus with approximately 18,000 square feet of air-conditioned space and is designed to nurture up to 216 children. The 1948 church building (the church relocated from this site years ago) is a local historic landmark and will be renovated for use as a community room. The church building is set off from the new campus by a grove of shade trees that surround the Bob Alsen Peace Garden. The new campus is organized around a large courtyard and seeks to integrate Florida’s natural environment into the classrooms consistent with the Reggio Emilia educational philosophy.