The 163,000-square-foot facility is being built to support the school’s College of Human Medicine and will replace the Van Andel Institute also located in Grand Rapids. The new facility must accommodate the 250 researchers and support staff that will need new workspace when the Van Andel Institute lease expires in 2017. The university plans to house 44 project investigator teams in the new research facility, compared to the 18 teams currently operating in the Van Andel Institute.

In order to make way for the new facility, MSU will demolish the former Grand Rapids Press building later this spring. The $3.1 million demolition costs will be paid for by bonding and donations from donors, making up for the funds not accounted for by the board approval. The university purchased the building and five downtown Grand Rapids parking lots for $12 million in 2012, according to MLive. The research building will occupy about half of the parcel. This gives the university future opportunities to engage other public-private developers about complementary projects that could further enhance MSU’s vision for medical education and commercialization of science.

Although the medical school is tax-exempt, the school requested approval for tax breaks due to possible plans to incorporate private redevelopment on the site. The Grand Rapids Brownfield Redevelopment Authority approved up to $29 million in property tax reimbursements to cover the cost of demolition, site preparation, infrastructure improvements, storm water management and parking ramps.

Bethesda, Md.-headquartered Clark Construction Company and locally based Rockford Construction, working in a joint venture, will manage construction of the building. The architect/engineer on the project is SmithGroupJJR, with offices in both Detroit and Ann Arbor, Mich. The project is slated for completion in late 2017.

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The increased demand for access to the allied health professions programs as well as basic science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) courses required by other degree programs has greatly increased pressure on the existing laboratory facilities, according to a statement by SmithGroupJJR. Additionally, the intense use of the facilities, coupled with Cowley Hall’s aging infrastructure, has made it increasingly difficult to accommodate students and deliver modern instruction.

The first phase of the project will establish a new 180,000-square-foot building located immediately north of Cowley Hall to house the instructional and research labs for the university’s physical and life sciences programs. Cowley Hall’s classrooms, lecture halls and faculty offices will remain operational during construction of the initial phase. Phase I is currently in preliminary design stages and construction is estimated to complete in 2018. LEED certification is targeted.

“This facility will alleviate the pressure on current laboratories that are unable to accommodate the level or intensity of use that is needed,” said Tony LoBello, SmithGroupJJR Learning Studio leader, in a statement. “With more than 85 percent of the building dedicated to instructional and research labs, the new facility will address the critical, immediate needs of students and researchers.”

Demolition work will comprise much of the project’s second phase, leveling Cowley Hall. A new 148,000-square-foot structure containing classrooms, collaborative learning spaces, offices, conference rooms and other ancillary departmental and building support areas will take its place and connect to the soon-to-be-built Phase I structure.

Upon completion of the project, the University will have a distinctive new home for science instruction and include the departments of biology, chemistry, geography/earth science, mathematics, microbiology, physics, river studies and the offices of the dean of the College of Science and Health.

Construction of the new instructional science facility is one of several campus projects in various stages of development. In September the university announced that more than $241 million in major building projects are currently underway, including a new residence hall and an expansion of the existing student recreation facility. Construction of a new student union will begin this spring, and the school’s SmithGroupJJR-designed $44.5 million New Education Building was just completed earlier this year.
 

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The 2014 CAE Educational Facility Design Awards jury includes John R. Dale, FAIA (Chair), Harley Ellis Devereaux; Claire Gallagher, Assoc. AIA, Georgian Court University, School of Education; Fred Dust, IDEO; Dutch MacDonald, AIA, MAYA Design; and Marsha Maytum, FAIA, Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects.

2014 CAE Educational Facility Design Award winners:

Baltimore Design School; Baltimore; 
Ziger/Snead Architects


The new Baltimore City Public Schools facility combines middle and high school with a focus on fashion, architecture and graphic design. The school was created from an abandoned historic factory building dating back to 1915. The architect transformed the facility in the confines of a minimal budget by using best practices for historic renovation, adaptive reuse, educational design and sustainable design. A driving force in creating the school was the desire to develop creativity and design-informed critical thinking skills for public school students.

Buckingham County Primary & Elementary Schools at the Carter G. Woodson Education Complex; Dillwyn, Va.;
VMDO Architects, P.C.


Two Virginia mid-century schools were transformed into a cutting-edge, holistic learning environment for K-5 students. Evidence-based healthy design principles — integrated into the campus landscape — promote healthy eating, nutrition education, physical activity and well-being as a response to the national childhood obesity epidemic. The K-5 campus includes a teaching kitchen, nutritional displays, open servery, food lab, scratch bakery, dehydrating food composter and student gardens.

Drexel University College of Media Arts and Design (CoMAD) URBN Center; Philadelphia;
MSR (Meyer, Scherer & Rockcastle, Ltd.)


The repurposing of a landmark Venturi, Scott Brown decorated shed provides a new location for Drexel University’s College of Media Arts and Design. The new school brings together different departments into one location, encouraging collaboration across multiple disciplines. The design of the new space focuses on the original “do more with less” concept of the four-story commercial building by creating adaptable spaces for learning.

University of Chicago Child Development Center – Stony Island; Chicago;
Wheeler Kearns Architects


The University of Chicago Child Development Center design does away with primary colors and synthetic play equipment used in most child development facilities. Instead, it offers children an opportunity to discover nature by emphasizing the natural landscape. The facility is centered on two playscapes that have a footprint larger than the building itself. The playscapes conceptually graft onto the historic Frederick Law Olmstead landscape located across the street in Jackson Park. Materials constructed by nature either from the atmosphere (trees, plants, wood) or from the earth (boulders, rocks, sand) dominate.

Wilkes Elementary School; Bainbridge Island, Wash.; Mahlum


The new Wilkes Elementary School was designed around four intimate learning communities that support different styles of teaching and learning. Classrooms are located at the heart and linked on each end, providing a circulation pattern that prevents both the feeling and effect of isolation. The design also creates opportunities for variation in scales of learning from multi-classroom gatherings to intimate individual experiences.

Central Arizona College, Maricopa Campus; Maricopa, Ariz.; SmithGroupJJR


The creative, wide-ranging design of the new campus promotes cross-disciplinary learning and provides a model for arid-region sustainable development. The plan, called the Genome Project, creates a complete genetic blueprint for the new campus that promotes collaboration as well as celebrates local heritage and vernacular.

Coastline Community College, Newport Beach Campus; Newport Beach, Calif.;
 LPA Inc.

The new interdisciplinary, 66,800-square-foot Newport Beach Campus of Coastline Community College includes sustainability features such as stormwater management, natural ventilation, green roofs, living walls, maximized daylight and views of the ocean. The project was designed to achieve LEED Gold rating and exceeds the California Title 24 energy code by 33 percent.

James B. Hunt Jr. Library at North Carolina State University; Raleigh, N.C.;
Architect: Clark Nexsen, Associated Firm: Snohetta


Large open spaces connect all floors of the library, and staircases are emphasized to ensure an interactive and social environment between more focused study areas. Designed to achieve LEED Silver, the building features abundant natural light and expansive views of the nearby lake. Fritted glass and a fixed external aluminum shading system help diminish heat gain and maximize views and ambient natural light.

Nathan Hale High School Modernization; Seattle;
 Mahlum


Nathan Hale is a progressive, public high school known for its collaborative, presentation-based curriculum and strong community connection. This facility modernization and addition to the 1960’s structure creates a flexible teaching facility that unites the campus community. Light-filled halls and classrooms, as well as the building transparency, express the school’s values while creating a healthy environment.

PAVE Academy Charter School; Brooklyn, N.Y.;
 Mitchell | Giurgola Architects, LLP


PAVE Academy is a 450-seat, K-8 public charter school located on an isolated corner lot in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn. The PAVE leadership team’s goals included creating a community-friendly school that would support significant parent involvement and the needs of a particularly high-needs population living in poverty. Children arrive early for a quiet breakfast and stay well into the afternoon with learning and play to fill a void many face at home.

Raisbeck Aviation High School; Tukwila, Wash.;
Bassetti Architects


Raisbeck Aviation High School was created because of Highline School District’s proximity to the aviation industry in conjunction with the school’s desire to give students access to college and engineering professions. The new 400-student STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) school enables students to learn through co-location with the Museum of Flight and immersion in aerospace and aviation. The design supports this program physically, visually and symbolically with project labs for aircraft and robotics construction, state-of-the-art science labs, classrooms and a multi-purpose gathering space.

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The HHB was built to accommodate the student enrollment increase that caused the university’s School of Nursing and School of Health Sciences to outgrow their separate facilities. The new building brings both schools together in a collaborative environment and is the first to be constructed as part of the university’s proposed Health Quadrant Campus Master Plan.

Designed by SmithGroupJJR (with offices in Detroit), the 160,260-square-foot building houses advanced classrooms and hands-on instructional spaces for students to learn in an environment that replicates that of a hospital or community health center. A public clinic, simulation labs, clinical and physical therapy labs are available to students.

The building was built on the former site of a parking lot and an untended natural wetland. Because it was being created for health sciences students, the university wanted the structure to incorporate healthy building practices.

“Environmentally friendly buildings have show to have positive effects on the quality of their occupants’ health, so it was easy for the university to decide that the new Human Health Building should be highly sustainable,” said Chris Purdy, AIA, LEED AP, Smith GroupJJR principle-in-charge for the project, in a statement.

The facility’s energy systems cut energy costs by an estimated 35 percent annually compared to the LEED baseline building. A geothermal field consisting of 340 wells was built 320 feet below the university’s main parking lot and uses the earth to provide energy for heat pumps that heat and cool the building. The 117 vacuum tube solar thermal panels also provide heat for the building in the wintertime, as well as provide the desiccant dehumidification system in the summertime and domestic water heating throughout the year. Plus, four, 25,000-gallon underground takes store excess solar generated hot water until it’s needed. The building also features a rooftop photovoltaic system that consists of more than 200 solar panels, which provide 45 kilowatts or 3 percent of the building’s power.

The building’s design focuses on sustainability, too. For instance, a porch created by the overhang of the upper floors protects faculty offices from solar heat gain. Exterior offices feature vertical sunshades and fritted glass that reduce glare and also cut down on outside heat. Rainwater is collected from the roof and stored in a below-grade cistern to be used for site irrigation.

The building’s interior features an elongated floor plan that includes floor-to-ceiling windows, allowing for natural light and expansive views of outdoor spaces. The materials used in the design such as sealed cork floors and bamboo cabinets are recycled, regional and low-VOC. The walls are also made with insulated cinderblock to reduce energy costs. There are daylight and occupant sensors throughout the building to help reduce energy used by occupants.

A 100-year-old oak tree stands on the south side of the building. It was incorporated into the site design instead of being cleared. The site’s natural wetland was also revived with native vegetation to provide an outdoor lounge for students to gather.

About $40 million of the project’s funding came from the state legislature’s Capital Outlay Program. To achieve LEED Platinum on a tight budget, Oakland University, assisted by SmithGroupJJR, also pursued a $2.7 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy.

“This building was really geared towards the student population. Oakland wanted this building to be for the kids,” said Meredith McLellan, project manager for SmithGroupJJR. “Today’s students are really environmentally conscious, so it was actually something we heard from students as being a priority. When we got the opportunities through the grant, it was really the catalyst that allowed us to reach Platinum. It was really driven by that opportunity.”

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The current campus is also located in San Francisco but the move to a former Wells Fargo office building, at 155 Fifth St. in the city’s South of Market district, will provide the school with a visual presence in the heart of the city.

“The new facility allows Pacific to strategically expand its footprint in San Francisco by providing a highly visible presence downtown,” said Pacific President Pamela Eibeck.

The university purchased the building for $47 million and plans to spend an additional $104 million on renovations for students and future businesses.

According to Eibeck, the school will occupy the top five stories of the building and the bottom two levels will be leased as premium office space.

After an extensive interview process, the San Francisco office of SmithGroupJJR was hired as the design lead in August 2011 to design the 395,000-square-foot school. San Francisco-based Plant Construction Co. is serving as the general contractor and Nova Partners, Inc. of Palo Alto, Calif., was hired for project management services.

The new school will accommodate 500 students in six programs and have more than 500 faculty and staff. The school will be designed to have a better layout for labs and clinics and will be easier for visitors and students to access via public transportation because of its close proximity to Bay Area Rapid Transportation stations.

“The new campus represents a significant investment in San Francisco, bringing new jobs, new economic activity and one of the top dental schools in the nation to the heart of our city,” said San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee in a statement.

The design team developed the building with the latest architectural innovations in order to cater to the mission and operations of the school.

“The potential is huge for us,” said Nader Nadershahi, executive associate dean for academic affairs in San Francisco. “It’ll give us state-of-the-art technology on site. The school has been recognized nationally as a leader in dental education, and this move allows it to stay in a leadership role.”

The school recently launched a fundraising program to cover $40 million that will be needed to pay for the new building after the previous school in the Pacific Heights neighborhood is sold.

The project is seeking to achieve a U.S. Green Building Council LEED Gold Certification by targeting specific areas in design and construction including sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality, and innovation and design.

The new school will house a complex program, with varied space types planned into a very large floor plan that will cause some obstacles for design teams. Wayfinding, circulation and daylighting are all challenges and opportunities to resolve, according to SmithGroupJJR.

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