Rancho Cotate High School Opens $52-Million Theater, Arts, Gym Building
WLC Architects, Inc. is pleased to announce the Grand Opening of the Rancho Cotate High School Theater, Academic, Gymnasium (TAG) Building in Rohnert Park, Calif.
The bold idea for the TAG building was conceived with the intent to create a state of the art performing arts, athletic, and academic facility to continue to improve student achievement. This 75,000-square-foot, $52-million, collegiate-level facility is unparalleled in Northern California and will be catalyst for a successful future for the students at Rancho Cotate High School.
The Master Plan completed by WLC in 2014 for the Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified School District ultimately envisioned an entirely new Rancho Cotate High School to serve the community for the next 100 years. The TAG building is the first step and an integral part of the master planned new high school.
Drawing inspiration from the Green Music Center at Sonoma State University, whose performance hall opens to the lawn at the rear of the building, the reversible stage incorporated in the TAG Building opens to one of the largest gymnasiums in Northern California. The acoustically tuned, 250-seat formal theater will provide a beautiful venue for student, community, and professional performances on campus through multiple disciplines—orchestral performance, spoken word, live music, drama performance, or projected media. The outstanding audio and video system provides professional sound and video to the venue, allowing students to hone their theatrical craft in a curated environment.
The new Henry J. Sarlatte Gymnasium will be a centerpiece for school sports and community functions. With 2,000 seats available in the built-in bleachers, larger audiences are able to enjoy sports and programming in this state-of-the-art facility. The house lighting and sound capabilities create a high level of flexibility for the needs of the school campus and visiting guests. With a maximum capacity at upwards of 3,000 people, the space can easily accommodate concerts, awards ceremonies, graduations, and guest performances with the use of movable seating and setup.
Sporting a regulation NCAA-sized basketball center court and volleyball court, the gymnasium is outfitted to host multiple sports under one roof. The gym features volleyball practice courts, basketball practice courts, badminton courts, multiple full-sized wrestling mats—all set for hosting local and state competitions on campus. Full locker rooms for home and away teams add to the hosting capabilities for sports throughout the year.
Apart from an intimate theater and comprehensive gymnasium, the additional classroom spaces add even more to the student offerings. An acoustically-tuned, recording-ready music room gives the band a unique space to rehearse—coupled with three practice rooms, each with recording capabilities.
Four audio-visual classrooms and a full video lab provide opportunities for students to create with professional tools. Print media, Photoshop, and digital arts—along with audio and video production—are all available for student use. The ability to produce content in-house and provide media packages to the school and community adds a huge value to this space—allowing more opportunities for students to communicate through different mediums.
A full dance studio and weight room expand the offerings of the Physical Education program. A dedicated space for the students to develop their dance and performance skills—along with dedicated weight training space for the student athlete—provide students with the spaces and tools needed to succeed in their academic and athletic pursuits.