2025 Texas & Southeast Best Projects
Award of Merit, K-12 Schools: Northside ISD John Jay High School Fine Arts

Northside ISD John Jay High School Fine Arts
San Antonio
Award of Merit
Submitted by: Joeris General Contractors
Owner Northside Independent School District
Lead Design Firm Alamo Architects
General Contractor Joeris General Contractors
MEP Engineer DBR Engineering
This transformative, $46-million, 70,000-sq-ft facility elevates the campus’ fine arts programming with a 900-seat auditorium equipped with a fly loft, theater-grade sound and lighting systems, and a mechanically operated orchestra pit as well as tailored learning spaces for a range of fine arts disciplines.
Major construction proceeded while the school was fully occupied. To ensure continuous operation of critical utilities, the team turned to a careful make-safe strategy, installing barriers to isolate construction zones.
Due to limited funding, the contractor coordinated both plumbing and mechanical scopes under one trade partner. Labor shortages meant that scheduling and productivity had to be optimized. Tight site conditions mandated just-in-time material deliveries with phasing strategies that maximized space efficiency and limited congestion. Early procurement of steel and make-safe materials allowed the team to begin critical work before full preconstruction activities began.
To install theatrical rigging, lighting and audiovisual systems, the team used BIM to model and coordinate ceiling clouds, rigging locations and A/V infrastructure, minimizing rework and achieving installation accuracy.
While building the auditorium, crews used a custom-built dance floor scaffold separated from walls and equipped with movable outriggers that allowed workers to install acoustic panels and wall finishes simultaneously.

