Pomona College Receives Architectural Prize
LOS ANGELES — Pomona College’s $23 million LEED-certified biology building received the award for outstanding architecture in the category of sustainability at the 37th annual Los Angeles Architectural Awards.
Designed by Newport Beach architects Bauer and Wiley, the LEED silver-certified Richard C. Seaver Biology Building that opened in 2005 houses the college’s biology department and its molecular biology and neuroscience programs.
Hosted by the Los Angeles Business Council, the Los Angeles Architectural Awards recognize innovative projects that improve the quality of architecture and enhance the urban fabric of Los Angeles County.
The 46,000-square-foot facility features teaching and research laboratories, science classrooms and faculty and departmental offices. Greenhouses, incubator rooms, darkrooms, sterile transfer rooms and walk-in warm/cold rooms were also incorporated into the three-story facility.
The building’s LEED silver certification places it in the top 1 percent of academic laboratory facilities in the United States in terms of environmentally sustainable design components and operations.
With college officials focused on environmental sustainability from the outset of the project, the Bauer and Wiley design is anchored around a three-story glass atrium and a pitched and louvered parasol that shades the building. Reflective paving surfaces augment the cool-roof by reducing the heat island effect.
The design utilizes natural light through the use of large windows, and light shelves and shades optimize daylighting to maximize natural light filtration and enhance solar control and thermal comfort.
A photovoltaic roof with ancillary arrays integrated into window walls provide enough power to light and ventilate the building’s entry rotunda and various lounges. A thermal-energy storage system provides off-peak energy, and operable windows in all non-laboratory spaces complement the facility’s high-efficiency HVAC system, which is chlorfluorocarbon- and halon-free.
The facility exceeds California’s energy-related design codes by 10 percent to yield approximately $75,000 per year in energy savings compared to a comparable non-certified facility, officials say.
A high-efficiency irrigation system serves landscaped spaces, which feature only low water-demand plants. The incorporation of waterless urinals and double-flush toilets further reduces the facility’s water usage.