Project Data:

Completion Date:     11/1/2020

Square Footage:      327680

Building Use:           Student Housing

Design Architect:      MVE + Partners

Project Description:

Planning Process:

As a P3 (public, private partnership) Project, the College and District defined their project vision - “This project is viewed as an extension of the academic environment of the campus; a living laboratory to support student’s co-curricular learning, development and academic success.” Our team listened and engaged with the campus community – students, campus leadership, shared governance committees - to understand and provide a solution which embraced this vision - an enriching on-campus experience for the residents as well as a vibrant place of connection for the broader College student population.

Design for Integration and Design for Equitable Communities

Every planning and design decision upheld a philosophy of enrichment and connection.

Typical housing projects are designed from the “inside out” – the units are selected, organized into floor plans, stacked, and then placed on a site. Our design started from the “outside in” and with a simple question, “How should this project relate to the broader campus?” Taking campus circulation (pedestrian, bicycle, and vehicular), open space and connection as the starting point, the organization of residential units and community spaces on the site ensures visual and physical connection, porosity, and approachability, furthering the College’s goal of achieving an “extension of the academic environment of the campus.” As such, administrative and large community focused spaces were strategically placed to create an arrival court: a “gateway” space which anchors the project and connects with the core of campus via an enhanced pedestrian promenade. These ground level community spaces were envisioned as “great rooms” intended to support various residential life programs and larger campus functions.

To promote community within the complex, the design integrates and connects via its organization and circulation, living spaces with resident services, and smaller community spaces to enhance the student’s experience, co-curricular learning, social development, and academic success.

Holistically, the project is seen as a sequence of experiences offering a hierarchy of opportunities for connecting and interacting among the diverse users (resident and non-resident) while providing a safe, access-controlled residential environment.

• From a campus-wide perspective, the project’s ground floor arrival court and adjoining outdoor and indoor community spaces are accessible to all, providing an open, porous connection with the campus. The ground level experience is one that integrates the academic environment and encourages social interaction between the residents and the greater student population.
• From a resident perspective, visual and physical engagement with community spaces on all floors is achieved with strategically located communal spaces (study, laundry, mail) as well as open stairs and “social balconies” connecting the buildings and community spaces at each level.
• Restricted access to outdoor spaces further enhance the social experience of the residents by providing both passive and active opportunities through a variety of purposefully programed and designed courtyards.

Sustainability
• The project exceeds the stringent Title 24 Energy Code requirements
• Open building corridors provide natural ventilation and eliminating the need for HVAC
• To minimize reliance on personal vehicles the project provides
 Connection to the campus and community bike paths including many secured bike racks for the use of the student’s residents and guests at a rate of 0,25 stall/bed
 Ease of connection to public transportation reduces reliance on personal vehicles
• High-reflectance roofing and paving surfaces
• Shading of exterior spaces to encourage student use, health and wellness
• Use of drought tolerant planting
• Selection and specification of environmentally appropriate materials and systems balanced with maintenance and operating costs.