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 The Village High School
Architect
Turner Duran Architects, LP
333 Cypress Run, #350, Houston, TX 77094
www.turnerduran.com
General Description
Location:
Houston, Texas
Date Bid: Sep 2007
Construction Period: Oct 2007 to Aug 2008
Total Square Feet: 42,743 Site: 4 acres.
Number of Buildings: One.
Building Size: First floor, 18,218; second floor, 13,209; third
floor, 11,316; total, 42,743 square feet.
Building Height: First floor, 10’; second floor, 13’; third
floor, 26’; floor to floor, 13’; total, 62’.
Basic Construction Type: New.
Foundation: Cast-in-place, pier & grade beam, reinforced,
slab-on-grade. Exterior Walls: Brick, cast stone. Roof:
Built up, metal, membrane. Floors: Concrete. Interior Walls:
Metal stud drywall.
Construction Team
Structural Engineer: Pinnacle Structural Engineers - 5516 Chaucer
Drive, #B, Houston, TX 77005
General Contractor: Durotech LP - 11931 Wickchester Lane, #205,
Houston, TX 77043
Mechanical Engineer: Graves Mechanical - 5910 Schumacher Lane,
Houston, TX 77057
Electrical Engineer: LECS, LTD - 11226 Jones Road West, Houston,
TX 77065
Meritas, a world wide family of college preparatory high schools,
embarked on an ambitious project to master plan and build a new high
school campus on a small site in west Houston. By consolidating their
various grade levels to a single campus, the project created a renewed
sense of academic community and addressed the need for a comprehensive
K-12 program.
The main entry sequence encourages visitors to move through a two-story
high archway. Brick, stone, pitched roofs and the building forms recall
Neo-Classical architecture from around the world, which reinforces the
"global learning" concept. Common materials and modulating massing
suggests the fine traditions of the school, while setting a standard for
the next generation of students.
The building is both sheltering and nurturing, while retaining an open
plan to facilitate collaboration and improve communication between
departments, students and faculty. The new three-story building is a
state-of-the-art facility with an academic program including high-tech
classrooms, fully-outfitted science lecture/laboratories and a
performing and fine arts component.
An important strategy for meeting the "sustainable" energy use reduction
goal was the lighting approach. Daylighting is used throughout the
building to provide illumination. This design approach greatly reduced
the need for interior cooling to offset the heat generated by even the
most efficient electric lighting loads.
A focal point of the building is a rooftop plaza; the heart of the
facility serves to inspire and encourage faculty/student interaction and
functions as a multi-purpose area for group events.
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