March_1965 — Page 19

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PARABOLIC

ARCHES

SUPPORT

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ASSEMBLY HALL

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Assembly hall, View from first floor corridor

Tak Nga Secondary School

HE building of three reinforced

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concrete parabolic arches in what would normally be the internal court- yard of a U-shaped building has given the new Tak Nga Girls' Secondary School in Kowloon two play areas one at ground level and the other, a raft supported by the arches, at second floor level.

The ground floor area doubles as an assembly hall while the open air play area above is connected with the second floor classroom verandah.

Architect, Mr. Kuo Yuan-Hsi, MA, was commissioned by the Salesian Society to design the school on a limited site at Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon. The requirements were 24 classrooms for girls, with one laboratory each for chemistry, phy- sics, biology and general science, plus a handicraft room and a music

room.

Cantilevered Verandahs

This accommodation has been provided in an almost square five- storey building incorporating the two play areas. General offices, prin- cipal's office, medical inspection room and one library are on the ground floor, and the classrooms and laboratories are arranged above around three sides of the square with verandahs cantilevered out over the central well and connected by three open staircases.

An intermediate landing between the two staircases at the end of the assembly hall serves also as a loge

overlooking the whole hall and stage at a point of vantage. The three staircases are placed at almost equi- distant points so that quick exit is possible from all classrooms in case of emergency.

Precast reinforced concrete piles, varying in depth from 18 ft. to 35 ft.,

were sunk around the perimeter of the site. The remainder of the build- ing is supported on spread footings.

The school is a simple reinforced concrete framed structure, cast in situ. Columns are spaced at 24 ft. centres in one direction and 25 ft. in the other. The box formed by beams

TAK NGA ANGLO-CHINES

Tak Nga School seen from Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon

Far East Architect & Builder March, 1965

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