High Exposure
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| Photo: Lara Swimmer Photography |
The occupants of John R. Howard Hall, the new social sciences building at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Ore., sought an environmentally friendly facility that would express its understructure, where materials would be raw and exposed. Seeing the underlying structure is a metaphor for the social scientists’ life’s work.
Materials exposed throughout the 51,000-square-foot facility include things like thissteel beam and columns, concrete masonry units, concrete floors and maple certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.
“The building is designed to expose all of its structure, both inside and outside, and it is also designed so that the materials that are used in it are primary structural materials,” says Thomas Hacker, FAIA, principal in charge of design, Thomas Hacker Architects. In some areas, pieces of the building that are normally hidden from sight are exposed instead. That way, the service elements of the building can be seen, says Hacker.
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Project Data John R. Howard Hall, Lewis & Clark College, Construction Budget (Hard cost): $11.8 million |
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The new building features skylights and operable windows designed to provide natural light, allow for natural ventilation and offer students, staff and faculty views of the outdoors. The top floor is replete with skylights and houses faculty and departmental offices. Classrooms are on the first and second floors.
There are three sizes of classrooms, all of which are filled with natural light. The large windows also have motor-operated blinds.
The building houses 26 classrooms, all of which have wireless network access and flexible seating. Some have even more special features: Three classrooms have wired connection to the network at every seat, and 14 classrooms are equipped for multimedia presentations.
Howard Hall also contains 54 faculty and staff offices, seven rooms for meeting, conferences and special projects, and 36 interior bicycle parking spaces.
Designed to last 100 years, the building’s exterior brick-clad walls and gabled roof forms reflect the history of Lewis & Clark, while the mechanical systems and material selections allow for a contemporary building to emerge.
Recycled materials were selected wherever possible. Flooring includes a terrazzo tile that has a 33 percent recycled glass content. To provide a higher standard of indoor air quality, cotton insulation is used instead of fiberglass. The cotton insulation is made from 100 percent industrial scrap from denim manufacturers. There are no finish materials that were manufactured using ozone-depleting hydrofluorocarbons or that contain PVC.
Gold
At least 30 subcontractors had to be educated about the stringent requirements of a project seeking certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. In seeking gold certification, Howard Hall listed 45 points. Under the USGBC guidelines, 39 points is the cutoff for gold, and 52 is the cutoff for platinum.
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FSC-certified maple was specified for John R. Howard Hall. The wood paneling is solid maple. Photo: Robert M. Reynolds, courtesy of Lewis & Clark College |
The Y-columns are highly recycled — they’re made of roughly 90 percent post-industrial steel. A special permit was required to drive the Ycolumns to Oregon from Washington because, as one piece, the columns were extra wide. Photo: Lara Swimmer Photography |
Howard Hall was evaluated for sustainability based upon criteria outlined under the following focused areas: sustainable sites; water efficiency; energy and atmosphere; materials and resources; indoor environmental quality; and innovation and design process.
The building is meeting the LEED certification requirements in a variety of novel ways. In terms of siting, Howard Hall has the same footprint as the buildings it replaced, but it provides three times more usable space and it is expected to produce roughly 50 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions per square foot per year.
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The building’s raised-floor displacement ventilation system enhances indoor air quality while maximizing energy efficiency. Occupant exposure to contaminants is minimized because the exhaust air system carries away more contaminants than a conventional ventilation system. In addition, the raised- floor system allows for flexible building components for improvements as technology changes. Internal and external sun shading systems minimize glare and solar heat gain.
Daylight dimming and occupancy sensors save on electricity and reduce interior heat loads requiring air conditioning. The building’s elevator, manufactured by Kone, is non-hydraulic and is gearless and machineless. According to Nima Darabi, project engineer, Hoffman Construction Co., the elevator consumes 40 percent less electricity than a traditional hydraulic elevator.
“No. 1, the elevator requires no machine room,” says Darabi. “And two, you don’t have to mess with the oils, because it doesn’t have the hydraulic system. It is a more efficient system.”
The elevator core is made out of CMU block and it’s highly exposed. “When you walk in, the very first thing you notice is this mass structure,” Darabi explains in reference to the elevator core. He notes that that was one of the more challenging aspects of the project.
Robin Wilcox, architect’s representative at THA, agreed: “Typically you use finishes and trim to hide joints and hide where things come together. We did not have that opportunity.
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The granite trough that transfers water from the downspout onto these water quality gardens came from India. “The channels were hand-crafted. There were a lot of hours spent on this piece,” notes Nima Darabi, project engineer, Hoffman Construction Co. Photo: Nima Darabi |
Everything was exposed and everything had to be thought about as far as how it came together and how it was going to be constructed.”
One site priority that received recognition before it was even operational was the building’s stormwater management system. The system is designed to minimize stormwater runoff, increase onsite filtration and reduce waterborne contaminants.
Water
The building’s landscape, designed by landscape architect Walker Macy, received a 2002 Honor Award in the “unbuilt” category from the Oregon Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects. Eric Bode, project architect for Walker Macy, says that the facility will likely be submitted to ASLA again for consideration in the “built” category.
The stormwater filtration and recovery system has been called unique, as has the entire Lewis & Clark campus, because of its extraordinary gardens, some of which date back to 1925.
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PRODUCT DATA Construction Materials Insulation Roofing Acoustic Products Furniture Carpet and Flooring Washroom Equipment/Supplies Miscellaneous Paint |
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“The formal garden and the grounds around the garden have been the focus for the development of the campus,” explains Bode. “So there is this whole character that bleeds out from the estate into the academic areas and this [Howard Hall] becomes part of that.”
“Water quality gardens” were developed and contain vegetation in a sand-based soil. The system filters stormwater runoff and also captures it. First, plants and soils filter runoff before it enters a subsurface collection and storage system. The system supplements the captured water from the rooftops and surface drainage. Collected water is used for irrigation across campus. Runoff is stored in the college’s reflective pool and is used to irrigate plants and lawns, reducing the use of well and municipal water.
The stormwater planters were designed for function and for beauty. And just as one can see the structure of the building, so can one see the stormwater retention process. Hacker emphasizes that it’s not just about building a sustainable building. The integration of sustainable practice into beautiful structures is also important. And with Howard Hall, the visual beauty of the building is directly tied to the landscape.
Lewis & Clark College has made a commitment to integrate environmentally responsible development practices into its construction program. All college projects must meet the LEED certified level of sustainable development.
The private college’s commitment fits well with Thomas Hacker Architects’ philosophy.
“We design essentially all of our work to LEED silver or gold standard. The issue for us is whether the client will actually pay to have it certified,” says Hacker. “But we use the standards anyway because we think that is the most responsible way to move to the future in a good way.”
Lewis & Clark is not alone in using its environmental awareness as a tool for attracting students. “A lot of the colleges that we work with are using LEED standards because they find them to be a good marketing tool for incoming students,” notes Hacker.