To meet current mandates such as Zero Net Energy, or increased expectations for access, diversity, and equity, older facilities have an important part to play.
UC San Diego’s Humanities & Social Sciences building is a heritage structure from the 1970’s, with an exterior envelope that was dangerously falling apart. Our team designed its precast concrete panel system with carefully matched materiality, profiles, and fenestration that also improves environmental performance.
For the historic Faculty Club at UC Santa Barbara, the challenge of repairing a late 1960’s structure was more extreme: its budget-driven stucco and wood frame exterior was barely salvageable. With many characteristic structural features damaged by weather and decades of deferred maintenance, restoration called for an even more complete transformation. To avoid a repeat in 20 years, exterior walls with lateral wood trusses were absorbed indoors in a series of skylit “poche” spaces. A courtyard that had grown moldy in the cool coastal climate was enclosed as a new meeting space. These renovations, plus an added wing of guest rooms, put the famous Club back in action as a campus center of community and hospitality.
