The original Apata Hall at Pahoia School was burnt down after a tourist pushed a car onto the steps of the 50-year-old hall and set fire to it.  This was a significant loss for the local community that had built the hall themselves with donated materials and labour.

The key objective for the new hall was to provide a space to be used for sports, education and community activities that blended with rest of the school.

The architect’s plans included two new feature walls, with the Apata Room Wing to be clad in a weatherboard that matched the existing school weatherboard.  The school had already used Palliside on its new swimming pool changing shed complex, and wanted the same smart look and low maintenance product for the new hall.  Low maintenance was a priority. 

The two feature walls were longer than the standard length of Palliside, therefore the 8m boards were manufactured specifically for this project to eliminate the use of joiners and to create a true feature wall. 

Steve Wadsworth, Principal of Pahoia School said, "We are extremely pleased with the Palliside weatherboards chosen for the new hall.  They don't need painting, which for a school is a huge advantage in time and money saving.  The weatherboards have proven to be very durable, especially under school conditions with several little children being on the grounds.  The Palliside weatherboards match in with the existing weatherboards, providing a consistent look to the school."