OMA and Jason Long Begin Construction on Frank Liu Jr. Academy for Music and Arts in Houston

Key facts

• Construction has begun on the Frank Liu Jr. Academy for Music and Arts (FLAMA) in Houston, Texas.
• The project is an adaptive reuse of the historic 1930s J. A. Folger & Co. coffee plant.
• OMA, led by partner Jason Long, is the design architect; RDLR Architects is architect of record; SWA Group handles landscape design.
• The 6,050 m² facility will be a tuition-free, open-enrollment public charter school for pre-kindergarten through eighth grade.
• The school is located along Buffalo Bayou East, across from Turkey Bend, a landscape project by Reed Hilderbrand with NADAAA and Rogers Partners.
• The project is expected to open in August 2027.
• The design follows Montessori principles, with classrooms along the perimeter for daylight and circular skylights in central common areas.
• Each floor has two central gathering areas called 'cymbals,' and a double-height cafetorium with a curved auditorium stair recalls a banjo's body.
• The three-story layout places the youngest students at the base, with a ground-level area for drum circles, a first- and second-grade commons with a French horn-shaped stair, and upper-floor libraries connected by an f-shaped opening.
• The project is part of a larger transformation of the area and parallels other industrial heritage revitalization efforts worldwide, including in New York, London, Brussels, Accra, and Marfa.