Project Updates

Building progress, building promise.

The planning process for construction, explained.

Planning and Stakeholder Feedback

Since 2024, the Pinewood project team has engaged in a collaborative process with our school community and the Town of Los Altos Hills, including planning staff, the Planning Commission, and other appointed committees. These groups have provided valuable early feedback and guidance that helped shape our preliminary project plans.

Equally significant has been the thoughtful input from our immediate and surrounding neighbors, gathered through individual meetings, group discussions, campus visits, and conversations hosted in neighbors’ homes. This feedback was overwhelmingly positive and instrumental in strengthening the proposal for this transformational project.

Formal Project Application

In February 2025, Pinewood submitted a formal project application to the Town. Following this submission, Town staff issued a comprehensive list of comments, clarifying questions, and requests for additional data in March. The project team spent several months addressing these items and submitted an updated application in June 2025.

Town staff has since completed its review of the revised application and provided a second, more limited round of comments. Importantly, staff also indicated that the application is now considered substantially complete, an essential milestone in the process. 

Next Steps

The next steps include determining the scope of the required environmental review and scheduling review by various appointed committees, the Planning Commission, and ultimately the Town Council for a final decision. This process is expected to continue through late 2025 and extend into early 2026.

Once approvals are secured, a permitting phase of approximately 12 months will follow.

Based on this timeline, the earliest possible start for on-campus construction would be summer 2027. Our planning is focused on a schedule that limits construction impacts to three summers and only one academic school year.

Assembling the Right Team

As we prepare for the Upper Campus Modernization, we are committed to approaching this next chapter with the same care and dedication. Our project team includes:

  • The architecture firm behind the 2016 Middle Campus renovation - CAW Architects, Inc. - has shaped impactful projects across Bay Area schools, higher-education institutions, and cultural facilities including the first two LEED Platinum K–12 public school buildings in the region, and a Net-Zero Energy Master Plan for a public high school in Oakland. Their notable work includes campus revitalizations at Stanford University, and high-profile renovations like the Berkeley Community Theater.

  • Pre-construction consulting from the same general contractor who built the middle campus, but are also experts in other public and private school modernization projects.

These partners understand the importance of maintaining excellence and safety while construction activities take place.

Next Steps

In the coming months, our continued collaboration with the Town of Los Altos Hills will further define the project timeline and bring greater clarity regarding the approval process for the Upper Campus Modernization Project. At the same time, we will carefully evaluate the two operational approaches for the single academic year during which construction will take place:

  • Option 1: Remaining on campus with supplemental offsite activities. Learn more >

  • Option 2: Relocating school operations to a temporary offsite location. Learn more >

At every stage, Pinewood’s highest priority remains the student experience and the delivery of excellent teaching and learning. We are committed to creating a modernized Upper Campus that fully reflects the values, aspirations, and standards of Pinewood School, ensuring that our students continue to thrive during this important chapter in our history.