Community Forum #1 was held on October 7th, 2025 in the Griffin Memorial School Cafeteria.

Harriman shared an overview of the project history, the scope of work for evaluating solutions, and the process for finding a supported solution.

Harriman then shared some examples of best practices in educational facility design, before asking forum attendees to participate in an interactive exercise called “crafting the design statement.”

Attendees broke out into groups and worked together to identify 3 words/phrases that capture the essence of Litchfield’s schools; select 3-5 design patterns (architectural features for educational facility design); and then to develop a “design statement” that captures the essence of Litchfield’s schools.

This design statement will help guide the design of the project going forward to ensure that the ultimate design direction speaks to the vision and priorities for the Litchfield community.

The combined design statement of the four groups is as follows:

“Create a safe, comfortable, and inclusive school environment that promotes learning, creativity, collaboration, and curiosity, designed for long-term community value.”