Improved Ventilation and Indoor Air Quality for a Historic Texas Theatre
Overview
Aging HVAC Control Systems in a Historic Theatre Required an Innovative Approach
The historic Saenger theatre in Texarkana, now known as the Perot Theatre, was first opened in 1924. This beautiful facility continues to be a regional hub for culture and entertainment, regularly hosting touring artists, the Texarkana Symphony, and local dance performances.
The Theatre underwent significant restoration in the 1970’s and is overall well maintained. Most HVAC equipment such as the main air cooled chiller and hot water boiler were in good working condition, but the air side equipment and associated controls were in need of improvement.
The City of Texarkana, TX engaged Holistic Utility Solutions to provide a turnkey review of existing systems and installation of improvements in Summer of 2023.
Problem
Holistic began with a review of the existing HVAC and control system. The existing system utilized older hardware and was serviced by a firm based in Central Texas, requiring a long trip for service and expensive trip charge.
While the HVAC system was generally in good condition, the system needed commissioning and there were several areas of potential improvement.
The project scope was defined and funding was allocated from an energy efficiency CDBG grant the City had available. Work was contracted through the Holistic Utility Solutions contract with TIPS.
Solution
The solution focused on the following HVAC and control system improvements:
- New Tridium Niagara based control system
- 3-way control valves on the chilled water coils
- Demand Control Ventilation for the main auditorium AHUs
- Commissioning of existing valves and dampers
- Chilled Water reset
- Boiler circulation pump interlock
Work was completed during a break in scheduled performances during the Summer months to minimize disruption to the event schedule. Mechanical installation was subcontracted to the City’s preferred local subcontractor, Krause Service Company (TACLA020659E), ensuring ongoing support and keeping as much of the project cost local as possible.
Result
The project was successfully completed on-time and on-budget. As with any project, there were minor items that came to the surface during the first seasonal changes. For example, the first cold weather in October resulted in an overheating of some zones. The Holistic team visited the site to troubleshoot and found that some of the control wires on the reheat valves were backwards, resulting in the valves opening instead of closing. Once corrected, the system worked as designed.
In addition to improved indoor air quality and humidity control that will help preserve the historic finishes in the space and ensure that patrons are safe and comfortable during performances, this project also received an incentive for energy efficiency from SWEPCO, the utility serving the property.