It’s Easy Being Green
More than twenty years ago, the Northeast Independent School District in San Antonio, Texas anticipated the city’s northward expansion and purchased 83 acres within the environmentally-sensitive Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone. They warehoused the land until growing student populations necessitated construction of a new high school. However, while the land sat undeveloped for two decades, environmental issues became much more public-and the public much more vocal. When time came to construct Ronald Reagan High School, the project turned into the state’s first major high school facility to incorporate environmental planning, low-maintenance sustainable architecture, and efficient systems. Architects from O’Neill Conrad Oppelt of San Antonio created a school and grounds that require with less maintenance and care than is typical of a 360,000-square-foot high school serving 2,500-3,000 students.
Environmental Planning
Construction of a large school can effect the most hardened of construction sites, but when working in an area as sensitive as the Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone, site work can be devastating, so the three school buildings and all parking areas occupy only a small portion of the 83 acre site and were built on grade to minimize digging and filling. The aquifer zone consists of limestone formations that collect groundwater used to supply water to nearly two million people in south central Texas. To protect the water source from contaminants-such as oil runoff from parking lots-special water filtration ponds were created. Additionally, landscaping was altered as little as possible and few trees were removed.
|
PROJECT INFORMATION Architect: O’Neill Conrad Oppelt Architects |
The school’s maintenance department greatly benefits from the “hands-off” grounds policy because natural vegetation does not require manicuring or upkeep. After construction, most of the disturbed area was re-seeded with native grasses that grow as they please. New planting areas were limited to areas adjacent to the school and to outdoor amenities, which include a soccer/baseball/football field, track facilities, and six tennis courts.
Low Maintenance, Sustainable Architecture
The initial planning for the school involved various committees-from community committee to user committee-that worked with the architects at different stages of design. The maintenance and facility staff was involved in the portion concerning lifecycle costs and at least three sessions were held to review key aspects of the building’s design.
|
PRODUCT DATA Carpet & Flooring Carpet: Dimension Construction Materials Brick/Masonry: Featherlite Security & Fire Safety Fire/Life Safety Systems: EST Furniture, Fixtures & Equipment Acoustical Doors: Overly Washroom Equipment/Supplies Drinking Fountains: Elkay Physical Education Equipment Athletic Equipment: Porter HVAC/Controls HVAC Units: Trane Miscellaneous ADA/Compliance Equipment: Garaventa |
The meetings resulted in several features found inside the school, including corridors with vinyl wall coverings and heavy-duty corner guards to eliminate nicks and reduce the frequency of repainting, the installation of durable stained and sealed concrete floors in circulation areas instead of tile-which the district says saved them $200,000-and the elimination of most ceiling finishes so the building’s structure is exposed; acoustical metal is used to reduce noise in areas with an open ceiling while acoustical tile is used in classrooms. The roof-a simple flat design popular in central Texas-minimizes the building’s scale and channels storm water for use in irrigating the school’s lawn.
However, the architects say it’s the school’s multi-colored, custom split-faced concrete masonry units (CMU) that, aside from being an unusual materials choice for a Texas school, makes this building aesthetically significant and virtually maintenance free. Used as both interior and exterior finishes, the block’s rough surface connects the buildings to the site’s mostly untended terrain yet requires no painting. Additionally, the textured surface provides visual interest but discourages students from touching the walls, preventing handprints and other marks. Around the doorways and windows, the CMUs were turned on their sides and used as decorative jamb pieces. Exterior areas without CMUs are covered with EIFS, an integrally-colored synthetic stucco that requires no repainting or periodic maintenance.
As for the school’s layout and floorplan, the three buildings-Learning Center, Physical Education Building, and Fine Arts Building-are arranged around a large courtyard where some of the site’s oldest oak trees still stand. The buildings themselves were designed to minimize the ratio of exterior wall to square footage while the Learning Center layout, oriented east-west, allows most classrooms to have outside windows for natural daylighting.
The majority of classrooms are located within the Learning Center and their design is referred to as “generic,” meaning that the spaces promote flexibility in classroom setup, course offerings, and scheduling. Classrooms that are “dedicated” to a specific use-such as science labs-occupy the Learning Center’s center sections and are surrounded by “generic” classrooms to accommodate various curriculums. All classrooms have Internet access for up to five computers and the school was designed to accept future technology upgrades.
Fortunately for the community, students are not the only ones who get to enjoy this uncommon facility. Its gymnasium, auditorium, cafeteria, and library also are available for community use; the library functions as a San Antonio branch library. Community education classes also are held within the school.
Efficient Features
In addition to design features mentioned in the previous section, the workshops between architects and maintenance staff resulted in the incorporation of several systems that make the school extremely efficient.
When planning the individual air handler closets/cabinets located between the classrooms, a prototype was built in one of the district’s warehouses to ensure the layout was conducive to maintenance. Rehearsals were conducted to see how easily coils and filters were removed and whether access to valves and shutoffs was acceptable. The resulting cabinets can be accessed anytime and promote long-term equipment care.
Additional features contributing to the school’s run at efficiency include air-to-air heat exchangers that pre-conditional all make-up air and an HVAC system monitored by a DVD program that tracks humidity, temperature, and energy consumption throughout the facility. The school also scaled back on air conditioning the entire facility, deciding that the gymnasium need not be air conditioned.