Encino’s Westmark School Begins Expansion

By Eric Althoff

ENCINO, Calif.—General contracting firm Suffolk is expanding the Westmark School, located in Southern California’s extensive San Fernando Valley. The school offers instruction to students with various learning disabilities, such as dyslexia, but was in need of an expansion.

The summer groundbreaking marked the first step for the private school’s 25,000-square-foot edifice, which will be home to 10 classrooms, a theater and an outdoor play area. As designed by NBBJ, the school will feature exposed lumber panels, hardwood lumber as well as various sustainable resources.

The superstructure for the facility will feature a cross-laminated timber (CLT) motif, which will provide support and rigidity in Southern California’s earthquake-prone climate.

In a recent announcement regarding the school’s construction, Ken Summers, the general manager of Suffolk Los Angeles, said that his team is working hard to provide a pleasant learning space that simultaneously makes use of eco-friendly construction practices.

“At Suffolk, we are well-equipped to navigate the changing needs of the education system, helping build, renovate and upgrade facilities that will be here to support students and faculty for years to come,” Summers said.

The project is estimated to be finished in time for the fall term of 2023.