Skyline College Environmental Science Building
College and District Goals
Skyline College and San Mateo Community College District aimed to create a building that was “dynamic and dramatic, attractive to visitors, and integrated into the campus” per their publicly-issued request for proposal. They intended for it to function equally well for academic programs and enterprise events, providing needed classroom space for their growing sciences program and generating revenue for the school.
Creating a Dramatic, Pavillon-Like Building
Perched atop a ridge overlooking the Pacific Ocean, the Environmental Science Building at Skyline College provides new learning opportunities and unparalleled views. From the front, the building appears relatively nondescript as a low horizontal band of concave concrete that relates to the existing campus fabric. This opaque, east-facing facade conceals the coastline from view, creating a choreographed sequence in which the views are slowly revealed and framed by the structure as visitors enter. At the center of the curve, a recessed two-story entry provides a gateway into the building.
Upon entry, visitors experience a double-height lobby that provides the first glimpse of the view—aided by long leading lines that direct attention straight through the building. Once in the gallery, the building completely opens up to vivid ocean views, creating a captivating, immersive experience. Spanning over 125 lineal feet, structural glazing visually removes the building boundary and provides uninterrupted views, allowing the coastline to become part of the interior experience. Taking this idea further, the speckled black concrete floor reflects the blue sky on sunny days, creating a vanishing effect—like an infinity-edge pool—where the blue-tinted floor merges with the ocean. Aided by this unfolding experience, the building is a dramatic, pavillon-like addition to the campus.
New Learning and Enterprise Opportunities
Maximizing this special location, the new building supports academic programs, college events, and community functions. Supported by the adjacent kitchen, the expansive gallery accommodates 250 people for dinner parties and up to 300 people in an auditorium set-up. The expansive and arcing space is completely column-free, allowing it to suit the needs of a wide range of functions. Movable furniture and an accessible storage room give the college the ability to meet these various needs. Additionally, integrated A/V and lighting systems including two media walls can be customized to serve a wide variety of events. A wind-protected, fireside patio offers another unique space to enjoy the expansive views. Flanking the lobby and pre-function space, tiered lecture halls and classrooms are similarly designed to accommodate multiple uses and learning modalities.
Adjacent to the building, a large circular patio provides a flexible space for outdoor environmental classes and events. Supporting geology courses, an array of boulders from across California frame the patio and offer seating. This functional display allows students to observe the state’s geologic evolution. Overall, the landscape creates a strong link between the campus and the natural environment, empowering students to explore the domain of environmental sciences.
Exceeding the Sustainability Policy
SMCCD and Skyline College have comprehensive sustainability plans, including policies that all new buildings meet the USGBC LEED Silver rating. Fitting for a new environmental science building, the project team went beyond the adopted policies and targeted higher levels of sustainability from the outset of the design process: LEED NC Gold and Net Zero Ready. The constructed building utilizes renewable, geothermal energy for heating and cooling. Heating and cooling are delivered through a radiant system. This reduces operating costs compared to conventional sources, helping the enterprise facility generate maximize the net revenue for the college. The system operates with minimal noise, which is important to the classes and events being held in the space.
The building was designed with passive strategies to minimize energy use and increase occupant comfort. Along the structurally-glazed west facade, deep overhangs extend out, shielding the expansive glazing during the summer. The glazing is a high-performance insulating vision glass that reduces heat flow between the interior and exterior. On the opposite side of the building, the opaque front wall supports the building’s tight envelope and works well with the non-occupiable spatial program: bathrooms, storage, mechanical rooms, and equipment rooms. Clerestory windows run through the heart of the building, pulling in natural light and minimizing electricity use. When needed, the lighting system utilizes 100% LED fixtures. To reduce the total life cycle cost of the facility, the design is sensitive to the harsh oceanic climate conditions: all mechanical equipment is located inside the building and all exterior metal is stainless steel or marine grade.