Premier Officially Opens Citadel High School

Students, staff and elected officials joined Premier Rodney MacDonald for the official opening of the leading-edge Citadel High School today, Nov. 26.

The $32-million school boasts advanced environmental design, two gymnasiums, a large library, state-of-the-art science labs and a tip of the hat to the past by incorporating features of the schools it replaced. Citadel High was built with some carved sandstone blocks that were once part of Queen Elizabeth High School, the front doors from the Nova Scotia Community College are the entrance to its library and the bleachers from Saint Patrick's High School.

"This beautiful building is an impressive result of hard work and innovative thinking by all those involved," said Premier Rodney MacDonald. "The kind of creativity that Citadel represents -- from its design to its construction to what goes on in its classrooms -- is the environment we need in order to educate our students to compete in the new Nova Scotia."

About 1,400 students from the former Queen Elizabeth and St. Patrick's high schools now call Citadel High home.

"This school is a remarkable mix of the old and new," said Education Minister Karen Casey, referring to parts of three former educational buildings that are now part of the new school.

"These items brought a lot of history with them and tradition is a wonderful thing to build on," said Ms. Casey. "But now they are part of something new and exciting and innovative. Citadel High's proud history is just beginning."

"This school was designed in a way that signifies to students that their education and their dreams matter," said Howard Windsor of the Halifax Regional School Board.

"To me, this will be Citadel High's legacy. We have set the bar for public education in Nova Scotia and for this we should take great pleasure."

One of the highlights of the school is that it adheres to the international Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards for sustainable, green benefits.

Some of its environmental features include:

• Rainwater collected to flush its toilets
• Reused building features from the two schools it replaces and the one that was demolished to make way for it
• Retained as much green space on site as possible
• Waterless urinals
• A reflective roof with part of the roof covered with grass
• Exceeding the energy code requirement for insulation R value
• Steam from Infirmary boiler plant is used to heat the building and water

Also, an innovative partnership between the province, the municipality and the school board has enabled the school to have a larger-than-planned gym, a second gym, a community centre and a future theatre. The city allows the school board to use municipal sports fields in exchange for free community access to areas of the school after hours.

Citadel High was designed by Fowler Bauld and Mitchel and built by Pomerleau Inc.