Grade A Design: Two Schools Are Renovated for the Next Generation
by Jonathan McGaha | April 30, 2008 12:00 am
The 2005 bond program of the Alamo Heights Independent School District in San Antonio set forth 18 months of renovations to five Alamo Heights ISD school campuses and upgrades for the district headquarters. The main goal was to modernize and create energy-efficient campuses. The junior high and high school underwent the largest renovations.
O’Neill Conrad Oppelt Architects Inc., San Antonio, worked closely with the school district throughout the bond planning process, conducting meetings with staff members, principals, district managers, administration and the superintendent.
“We started at the beginning and went through and developed the program and the scope of the bond,” said lead architect Lowell Tacker, OCO Architects.
The meetings allowed OCO to learn how the current spaces and equipment were being used, what the pros and cons of each area were, and what could be done differently to increase functionality. Through additional physical evaluation of the campuses-including interior and exterior envelopes, MEP systems, drainage, and vehicular and pedestrian circulation-a design was developed for the renovation program.
Because one of the main goals of the program was to increase energy efficiency at the schools while reducing operating costs, every campus had its windows and light fixtures replaced. MEP systems were also upgraded with controls to further efficiency. The glazing used in the new windows has a very distinctive property, allowing in 68 percent of the visible light while only letting in 32 percent of the solar gain. This alone increased the cooling capacity of the existing HVAC system by reducing air infi ltration and temperature loss while decreasing the solar heat gain. Motion detectors were also placed in each of the occupied spaces throughout the schools to save electrical costs.
Junior High
The junior high received a new fine arts building and an addition for administrative offices. In addition, the existing science labs, boys’ and girls’ locker rooms, auditorium, art labs, computer labs and kitchen cafeteria were renovated.
The 14,500-square-foot (1,347-m2) fine arts building features band, orchestra and choral rehearsal halls; a large ensemble room; practice rooms; storage areas; and a library. The 1,800-square-foot
(167-m2) administrative addition allowed the administrative offices to move from three hallways of the school into one centralized location.
According to Tacker, the junior high had undergone several renovations over the past 30 years in a variety of architectural styles. Those layers were stripped off, and the school got back to a more clean, modern appearance that closely resembles the original style of the 1950s building. This was necessary in order to unify the additions to the school.
A new entry merges the two-story classroom wing and one-story 60s-style wing while creating a prominent identity. Continuous storefront systems consisting of glass and insulated laminated panels replaced single pane glazing and fiberglass panel wall systems, increasing the thermodynamics of the building while rejuvenating the clean, classic lines of the original structure.
Approximately 4,950 square feet (460 m2) of Reynobond blue aluminum composite panels by Alcoa Architectural Products, Eastman, Ga., were used on the exterior of the fine arts building. Additionally, the building features approximately 12,000 square feet (1,115 m2) of Glaze-Guard 1000 Opaque Glazing Panels by Citadel Architectural Products Inc., Indianapolis. These gray panels in the window systems are tempered hardboard substrates with insulation sandwiched between two prefinished aluminum panels.
The junior high, which was predominately gray and silver, had an in-wall of glazed blue brick. OCO decided to pick up the district colors of blue and gold, making blue the predominant color with the panels on the fine arts building.
“The blue composite panels make the blue brick wall complimentary,” Tacker said. “It was a great way to add color to a simple palette.”
Another challenge OCO faced was rearranging the interior areas to create a more functional school. The cafeteria was enlarged so an entire grade level could be seated at one time, and the existing fine arts area was transformed into two computer labs, two large art labs and a teacher professional center.
High School
The high school, built mainly in the 1950s, also underwent a major renovation and addition as part of the bond program. A new science building, gymnasium and black box theater were built, in addition to renovating interior classrooms and expanding the auditorium.
A key issue at the high school was the building density of the campus. Because the campus was landlocked with no available building space, OCO had to devise a creative solution that not only utilized the new and existing spaces more efficiently but also allowed for phased construction without major disruption to the campus operation.
Two campus spaces were underutilized-the Cottage building, which housed the Life Program, Home Economics and Student Support Counseling, and the original band hall, which was being used as the weight room and training room. By renovating the first floor of the central wing of the main high school building to accommodate the functions housed by the Cottage, the new science building could be constructed on what was the site of the former Cottage building. This allowed OCO to design a state-of-the-art science building without being constrained by existing walls and structures, which would have happened if they renovated the existing labs. The 34,400-square-foot (3,195-m2), two-story science building has a total of 12 classroom labs with associated prep rooms.
The renovation of the classrooms made it possible for each department to be located in a wing, along with a team room that helps enhance the camaraderie and teamwork of each department.
Relocating the Life Program and counseling areas into the newly renovated areas helped bring them closer to the existing administration, counseling and nursing areas. Finally, the existing band hall was demolished, giving enough space to allow for the construction of a new weight room and training room with the auxiliary gym built on top. The 20,600-square-foot (1,914-m2) gymnasium is now known as the Sky Gym and supplies the entire school district staff with access to the weight room. By taking advantage of the wood floor and tall ceilings of the original auxiliary gym, OCO transformed the space into a dance/cheer/color guard space, which can also be used as a multipurpose testing area.
The exterior of the auxiliary gym utilizes 5,800 square feet (539 m2) of ribbed architectural panels by Berridge Manufacturing Co., San Antonio. The high school also features approximately 4,000 square feet (372 m2) of Citadel’s GlazeGuard 1000 Opaque Glazing Panels.
Inside the auditorium, OCO had to raise the rigging at the stage so scenic backgrounds and other theatrical devises could “fly.” A complete acoustical, audio/visual redesign and introduction of an entry lobby for both seating levels was also included. A new black box theater gave the campus a dedicated learning environment for the theater arts program. A new two-door, five-stop elevator was also installed, linking all the different levels together with the existing school.
“We also relocated five mature oak trees throughout the campus, instead of removing them completely,” Tacker said. “This gave us instant mature shade trees to shade the courtyard and other areas, allowing us to get rid of an $80,000 canopy from the budget.”
Meeting Goals
The junior high portion of the bond program was completed in August 2007, right before the start of the new school year. The majority of the renovations and additions to the high school were also completed in August 2007, but the auditorium wasn’t completed until November 2007.
In the first year after the Alamo Heights ISD bond program completion, it appears that the main concern of energy-efficiency has been met. Thus far, there has been approximately a 13 percent reduction in energy usage at the junior high and 18 percent reduction in energy usage at the high school, according to Tacker.
OCO worked closely with the Alamo Heights ISD in order to make sure the bond program went smoothly. By playing an active role in the planning stages, OCO was able to come up with a cost-effective solution for the renovation and new construction of the junior high and high school.
Alamo Heights Independent School District
Architect: O’Neil Conrad Oppelt, San Antonio
General contractor: Bartlett Cocke General Contractors, San Antonio
Subcontractor: NOW Specialties Inc., Carrollton, Texas
Ribbed architectural panels: Berridge Manufacturing Co., San Antonio
Glazing infill panels: Citadel Architectural Products Inc., Indianapolis
Aluminum composite metal panels: Alcoa Architectural Products, Eastman, Ga.
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