This project represents a first step in the expansion of the Community College campus. Conveniently sited off of the main entry, this location allows the campus to present a new public face to the community. With this in mind, the campus was determined to provide an architectural statement that would demonstrate to the campus population, surrounding community, prospective students and visitors that this is a sustainable and progressive learning environment.
The program of an 800-car parking structure and 17, 000 SF of programmed space will be the first LEED project on campus and is on target to achieve a Gold rating. The Photovoltaic array was designed to demonstrate the project commitment to sustainable practices as the system will power the entire project making it a net zero consumer of electricity. The project includes a large water quality basin that will not only treat runoff from the parking structure but will also polish runoff from surrounding campus watersheds. Also as an integral part of a campus wide ADA transition plan the project design incorporates an elevated walkway that allows students arriving by car, pedestrians, and users of local bus lines to avoid 19’ of grade change and to directly connect to the campus’s central quad.
Another important goal for the project was to strengthen the sense of community for the campus. Included in the project was the redesign of College Drive and the transformation of an existing drop off area into an arrival court both of which will provide an inviting and welcoming experience to all those who step onto the grounds. Additionally program components such as a student lounge, retail area, Student Activities Center (SAC), an adjacent exterior student court and a large multi-purpose “Community Room” were incorporated into the design to provide places for students and faculty to interact while bringing the energy and excitement of campus life to the public edges where it can be put on display. Functionally the project will also house surge space for faculty offices, DSPS, and EOPS as well as a campus police substation.
Set in a dry and arid climate the surroundings are highlighted by a dramatic desert landscape. As a way to integrate the project into its context native and adaptive plant species are called for throughout the entire project site and will begin to blur the lines between the natural environment and the campus. Not only desert appropriate, the landscape design will also be highly effective when it comes to the consumption of potable water. The culmination of all these efforts results in a project that generates its own power, manages campus stormwater, provides equal access to all, uses fewer natural resources and signals a new direction based on sustainable practices to strengthen an already vibrant college community.
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