Page 43 - spaces4learning, Fall 2021

EDUCATION DESIGN SHOWCASE • HIGHER ED
PROJECT OF DISTINCTION
SMC STUDENT SERVICES BUILDING SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
SANTA MONICA, CA
THE NEW, 366,277-square- foot Student Services Build-
ing consists of a three-story multi-purpose building and underground parking garage
for Santa Monica College. The project joins disparate groups of administration programs within a single building. A dilemma inherent in the project is the im- mense amount of small, dense programmed space required, combined with the desire for
the project to serve as the new public face and space of the col- lege. The solution, a permeable box, lightens the program at
the site and detail scale to allow for public flows between the community and campus, as well as between the underground garage and campus. Material also reinforces the permeability of the dense program. Light boxes puncture the large mass, bringing light to otherwise dark spaces of the building. These light courts also mark public flows along the lobby from the ground to the upper levels. GFRC and aluminum fins mask the mul- tiple programs, reinforcing the permeability of the solid box. The building received USGBC LEED Platinum Certification. Sus- tainable design features include multiple light wells throughout to bring natural light deep into the building’s large floor plates; high performance glazing; underfloor mechanical; electrical and data systems; and photovoltaics on the roof.
ARCHITECT
Huitt-Zollars, Inc.
CHRIS HUDSON, AIA 713-622-1180
PROJECT INFORMATION
CHIEF ADMINISTRATOR
Charlie Yen
COMPLETION DATE
2019
GROSS AREA
366,277 sq. ft.
AREA PER STUDENT
89 sq. ft.
SITE SIZE
3.6 acres
CURRENT ENROLLMENT
n/a
CAPACITY
1,265 students
COST PER STUDENT
n/a
COST PER SQ. FT.
n/a
TOTAL COST
n/a
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