Riverview High School was designed by Paul Rudolph, one of the leaders of the Sarasota School of architecture, a regional modern movement focused on designs especially suited for the climatic conditions of Florida’s Gulf Coast. Rudolph incorporated passive ventilation, day lighting, and shading into his designs for the school. The school first opened in 1958.
Riverside
High School
Paul Rudolph – 1958
Entry: August 2019
Designed to accommodate the local subtropical environment, the building incorporated design ideas that have attracted renewed interest as concern for climate change has grown. Its significance was demonstrated by the national and international attention that local mobilization was able to attract.
Over the years, Riverview sustained unsympathetic alterations to its design and systems, including the introduction of air conditioning, which weakened its environmental qualities and diminished its architectural appeal. Despite the building’s significance as a notable work of modern architecture, the school was demolished in 2009.
—World Monuments Fund