Award

August 2017

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AUGUST 2017 | 79 Kitsilano Secondary School Renewal RENDERINGS COURTESY KMBR ARCHITECTS PLANNERS INC. Kitsilano Secondary School Renewal by ZUZANNA WODZYNSKA K itsilano Secondary School students in Vancouver, B.C. can look forward to a seismically upgraded and renewed centre of learning this school year. The school was originally built in 1927 and its last major change was an addition in 1958. The heritage facade is all that remains of the original building. "The intent of the project was to maintain the exterior three main facades of the historic school and rebuild a new, seismically competent structure behind them," says Donald Luxton of Donald Luxton & Associates Inc., the heritage consultants on the project. "This retains the heritage appearance of the building, while providing a safe new learning environment." In addition to retaining and respecting the 1927 heritage facade, the new south wing defers to it through indents in the horizontal plane that allow the old walls to return at the east and west corners before the new building begins. The new portion of the building also makes a reference to the original through window placement, rhythm and proportion. "The building's overall L shape responds to the existing 1927 facade, setbacks, required vehicle access and relationship to the community centre," notes Witmar Abele, partner at KMBR Architects Planners Inc. "The three high-volume gymnasia and 350-seat theatre spaces are clustered within the historic facade." The community entrance to the school features a wide, gently sloping and tree-lined walkway from the street to the three-storey canopy structure that marks it. "Large expanses of glass at the entry hub accentuate the axial layout of the scheme and contribute to the permeability and openness of the school's interior common space," describes Abele. "Natural lighting and ventilation largely define the spatial experience." This is achieved through a combination of continuous clerestory glazing and skylights along the north and south wings, bringing daylight deep into the building on all levels. "Acoustic treatments were included throughout the school's public spaces in the form of natural wood slats applied over sound absorbing material," adds Abele. "These respond to the Wood First Act but also provide a warm, attractive wall treatment." Other interior applications include wood ceilings, wall protection, natural wood doors, wood trims and wood veneer millwork. While students are unlikely to notice the seismic upgrade, they will certainly notice the improved education space for 21st-century learning principles. Labs, shops and classrooms were designed to facilitate interdisciplinary teaching and project-based learning. Related instructional areas are clustered together to facilitate team teaching and collegiality among staff. "To provide future flexibility of the technical studies program and allow these spaces to adapt and respond to the changing needs of students, structural elements have been placed so partitions can be easily relocated," notes Abele. "In the future, we could see it completely reconfigured into something unrecognizable from the layout seen today." That kind of adaptability was also needed during construction as students continued to attend classes. The design-build was therefore rolled out in three phases. During the first phase, the students were still in the original building so construction and education continued unimpeded. "In the second and third phases, we needed to ensure that there was enough space for all the students before the new building was delivered in full," says Mariana Tanoni, project manager for the renewal from Bouygues Building Canada. "We added temporary classrooms and remodelled part of the old school to change the floor plan and allow lessons to function uninterrupted." In the second and third phases, students were moved into the partially completed building that needed to operate as a fully functional one. "The challenge was building the mechanical plant to work efficiently at part loads," says Alex Mitro, the lead on the project from Integral Group. "All pumps required Variable Frequency Drives [VFD]." The biggest challenge, however, would of course be the 1927 facade. "Retaining 3,000 square metres of historic wall complicated the demolition to a significant degree," notes Tanoni. "Instead of being able to demolish all in one process, it was necessary to cut away the floors and walls from the exterior facade." Moreover, since it was neither plumb nor straight, when it came time to install and tie in the new steel structure of the building, a lot of the steel structure needed to be modified on site to cut and weld to suit the irregular conditions. "Retention of such a large amount of historic fabric always creates constructional challenges and is less predictable than new construction," says Luxton. "Working in a heritage context takes more time and effort to ensure historic material is not damaged and that new work is appropriately attached to what is existing." One such aspect was the preservation of the historic wooden windows. These were removed from the facades and taken offsite to be repaired and reinstalled. Since there is a large number of them, simply numbering and tracking them was a challenge. Behind the historic walls, however, the newly upgraded Kitsilano Secondary School is decidedly modern, targeting LEED Gold standards. "There are natural ventilation components that bring only outside air into that room and thermal comfort is achieved by a radiant floor at the perimeter," describes Mitro. "In other areas of the school where we have rooftop air handlers, we use VFDs on all the fan motors to reduce energy consumption when possible." The school now features everything from high-efficiency lighting, heating and water closets, to three secured and preferred parking stalls for electric vehicle charging stations and 200 secure bicycle stalls. An eco garden was also added for student and community use by providing a small garden courtyard with raised garden plots and seating for passive use. "This newly renovated Kitsilano Secondary School will offer our students a 21st-century learning environment that combines seismic safety and preservation of the history of this important community facility," says Dianne Turner, official trustee of the Vancouver School Board. A LOCATION 2706 Trafalgar Street, Vancouver, B.C. OWNER/DEVELOPER Vancouver School Board ARCHITECT KMBR Architects Planners Inc. DESIGN-BUILD CONTRACTOR Bouygues Building Canada STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT Glotman Simpson Consulting Engineers SPECIALTY STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT Layton Consulting Ltd. MECHANICAL/ELECTRICAL/ ENERGY MODELLING CONSULTANT Integral Group LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT Maruyama & Associates HERITAGE CONSULTANT Donald Luxton & Associates Inc. TOTAL SIZE 219,045 square feet TOTAL COST $62.2 million 3:59 PM 3:42 PM 9:09 AM 3:49 PM 2:32 PM

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