Rehabilitation and Expansion of the former D. João de Castro High School
The rehabilitation and expansion of the D. João de Castro secondary school included the adaptation of the existing structure (the former D. João de Castro high school dates back to 1949) to a new programmatic and functional profile, implying sharing its facilities with the Vocational Training Center Electronics Industry (CINEL).
D. João de Castro high school original design dates back to Estado Novo, particularly evident in the traditional historicist vocabulary: sloping roof in ceramic tile, eaves in tile along the cornice, trims in carved stone in the main volume’s openings; stone foundation at the noble entrance; shield with the Portuguese symbols inherited from the Discoveries period, in its turn affixed to the pediment over the same entrance.
The intervention sought to maintain the identity of the preexistent building, where the pedagogical activities of the secondary school are in part kept and to create a system of buildings juxtaposed to the existing one to accommodate the new features. The new building containing the set of laboratories locates to the north of the main body of the former high school sharing the original circulation spaces that are, in their turn, expanded. This junction gives rise to a central void with a triple ceiling height similar to an interior patio with indirect natural light (through a skylight on the roof). The new building establishes a new urban boundary, emphasised by a new principal public access through a square at the same level of Jau street and the neighbouring secondary school (Rainha D. Amélia). The preexisting gap between the 2nd floor and the street is no longer an obstacle, protecting the new recreational spaces, cafeteria and other social areas. Finally, the pavilion for sports activities juxtaposes to the body of the old gymnasium. It allows the practice of various approved sports, available to the out-of-school community as well.