Facilities Tours
Higher Ed Facilities Tour
The Higher Ed Facilities Tour features stops at the University of Central Florida, College of Medicine and the Valencia College Campus, University Center and Special Events Center.
University of Central Florida, College of Medicine
The University of Central Florida, College of Medicine won the AIA CAE Award of Merit. The tour will be accompanied by the Project Manager, Drew Krecicki from HuntonBrady Architects. Mr. Krecicki will be available to discuss the planning and execution of the construction project, as well as answer any questions from tour attendees.
Two education and health‐care design architects joined forces to design the signature four‐story, 170,000 sf building. HuntonBrady Architects of Orlando and Ellenzweig Associates of Cambridge, Massachusetts, were the architect of record and design architect, respectively.
The new COM organizes the circular building around a dramatic exterior piazza for public interaction and gathering. The piazza serves as counterpart to UCF’s main campus piazza and gathering space in East Orlando, allowing for similar events and traditions to take place on both sites. The piazza’s configuration provides a well contained outdoor space facing north and a reference point from any spot in building’s main circulation concourse.
Inside, the circular configuration of the interior concourse allows for visual connection from virtually all levels within the building. The architects were mindful of sustainability and designed the COM for Silver LEED Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. Green design components will result in a 64 percent reduction in water use for irrigation, a 48 percent reduction in indoor water use, and a 21 percent reduction in energy use. Other sustainable features include low‐flow restroom fixtures extensive use of natural daylight, reflective roofing to reduce cooling costs, preferred parking for hybrid and fuel efficient vehicles, room occupancy sensors for lighting, native vegetation and water efficient landscaping, regional materials made with recycled content, low VOC paints, and much more.
Photograph Courtesy of Taylor Architectural Photography
Valencia College Campus
Valencia College campus features the University Center, designed by C.T. Hsu + Associates, P.A., which won the AIA CAE Award of Honor. The tour of the University Center will be accompanied by Nathan Butler, an architect from C.T. Hsu + Associates, who will be available to answer any questions attendees have and discuss the project.
Organized along a linear “spine” element, with classroom “pods” that rotate away in increasing degrees, the design celebrates the unity of separate systems found in shared spaces. The “spine” connects directly to the campus, materially and organizationally. The “spine’s” brick veneer and rhythmic fenestration directly refer to the vocabulary of the existing campus. The three classroom “pods” express a new language that primarily responds to environmental considerations. Curtain wall maximizes their north and south daylight while nearly solid concrete panels block harsh western sunlight.
An open atrium bonds the “pods” with the “spine” to create a grand space for students and faculty to gather informally. This area exposes building systems to provide an interactive, “sustainability-in-action” environment for students. As classroom “pods” rotate away from the “spine”, the atrium space increases in volume to spawn an expansive “front porch” facing the existing campus. This rotation also allows diffuse daylight to flood the atrium, creating a very light and welcoming environment. An outdoor plaza in front of the facility, and small scale exterior spaces for outdoor dining or quiet study between the classroom “pods”, complement the interior experience of this integrated educational facility.
The Special Events Center was given the AIA CAE Award of Excellence. During the tour of the Special Events Center, the Project Manager, Tommy Hagood and the Principal in Charge of Design, Maurizio Maso from HuntonBrady Architects will be present to discuss the structure and answer any questions tour attendees may have.
Designed by HuntonBrady Architects of Orlando, the 17,000 square feet building is located on the college’s West Campus at 1800 S. Kirkman Road. The building serves as an education facility for the college’s Culinary Management Program led by Chef Pierre Pilloud, CEC, its architectural program, and as a flexible special events center for college functions and community gatherings. It can seat over 400 people theatre‐style.
While culinary students sweat over perfecting crepes suzette in its commercial‐sized industrial kitchens, the education building is working in its own way to conserve energy and promote a healthier work and study environment for its inhabitants.
“Green architecture takes advantage of available natural resources, and this building’s form was generated by sustainable principles. The building’s design employs a modern interpretation of the Florida porch facing Lake Pamela. The porch’s deep overhang protects the main glass concourse from direct solar exposure in the summer while allowing indirect natural light inside the building year around” said Maurizio Maso, AIA, design principal at HuntonBrady. “Rainwater is abundant here in Central Florida, so we also designed the Culinary Arts building with a sloped roof able to capture and conserve it in a cistern and put it to good use.”
The college is pursuing LEED gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). LEED certification is bestowed by the U.S. Green Building Council and recognizes building performance in five key areas: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.
Most aspects of the building were designed with energy conservation in mind, including:
1. A rainwater collection system that filters water from the roof and stores it in an underground cistern for use in flushing toilets in the facility.
2. A large overhang over the south porch provides a covered exterior space facing the lake and protects the glass at concourse space.
3. Ample windows which allow for daylight and views in 90% of the building
4. All interior spaces benefit from controlled daylight
5. Landscaping with native plants that are drought tolerant which reduces irrigation usage.
6. High performance glass and materials containing recycled content.
7. Reflective roofing materials and crushed limestone walkways that reduce heat island effects
8. Regional brick, which cuts transport emissions
9. Recycled construction steel
10. Sealants, paints and carpeting certified as low‐emission
The $6.8 million facility will be Valencia’s second to be LEED certified for its green characteristics.
Photograph Courtesy of Randy Lovoy
K-12 Facilities Tour
The K-12 Facilities Tour features stops at Winter Park Ninth Grade Center, Park Maitland School, Arts and Athlectics Building and Edgewater High School.
Winter Park Ninth Grade Center
The Winter Park Ninth Grade Center Comprehensive Project was managed by the DLR Group and won the AIA CAE Award of Merit. Lindsey Piant, the Project Manager, and Mark Kaiser, the Project Leader, will accompany the tour to talk about the project and answer any questions participants may have.
Constructed in 1927 as the original campus of Winter Park High School, the Winter Park Ninth Grade Center has become an iconic historic fixture in the Winter Park, Florida, community. The first building was constructed in 1927 as the original High School. It was expanded in the 1950s and 60s and ultimately become the current school. However, over the past 20 years, the buildings have fallen into considerable disrepair.
The $27.6 million comprehensive renovation includes interior and exterior renovations to multiple existing buildings, a new classroom building, a new centralized energy plant and telecommunication system upgrades, and maintains the historic character while meeting ongoing needs of students, facility and administration. Orange County Public Schools charged DLR Group’s design team with several overarching goals: to restore and modernize the historic architecture of the campus; to create a learning environment that safely and effectively provides for the ongoing needs of the students, faculty and administration; and to create a cohesive vision for the campus that blends with the context of its surroundings; all while meeting existing school district prototype standards for classroom design.
The transformation of the campus began with major interior and exterior renovations to modernize four of the existing buildings totaling 75,000 square foot. Great care was taken to restore the existing historic buildings and preserve their architectural character. This restoration work included new windows, as well as repointing and painting of the stucco exterior facades, cast stone accents, and canopies.
The centerpiece of the campus, a new 80,000 square foot classroom building, is positioned at the edge of Pennsylvania Avenue to give the campus a strong urban presence and allow the existing campus to remain operational during construction. Additionally the two story “L” shaped massing was positioned along the edges of Pennsylvania Avenue and Clarendon Street to create a large external courtyard which visually links all of the buildings together as one great “exterior room”. This exterior room allows students the opportunity to move under cover and securely between all of the buildings.
The “genius loci,” or pervading spirit, of the new classroom building is one of a true contextual building. This is manifested in the careful placement of the two-story massing within a residential community, a strong urban edge, spatial interactions of the interior courtyard with existing buildings, and the exterior language that visually binds it to the existing architecture. Included in the new classroom building are science and math classrooms, art and music suites, a cafeteria, a state-of-the-art media center and TV studio, and an administration wing. The administration wing is the formal arrival point to the north for visitors coming to the campus during school hours.
Building Highlights:
Building Area: 155,000 SF
80,000 SF New Construction
75,000 SF Remodeled Space
• Organized the campus around a central courtyard space.
• Created a secure perimeter to the campus.
• Reinforced the urban edge along Pennsylvania Avenue.
• Alleviated congestion created by existing bus and parent drop-off along Huntington Avenue.
• LEED Registered: Design to LEED for Schools, 2007 Standards
Park Maitland School
The Park Maitland School visit will include a tour of the Arts and Athletic Building which was designed by Heery International, and presented the Award of Merit by AIA CAE. Clay Ransone, the Project Manager for the Arts and Athletic Building, will accompany tour attendees during this facility tour. He will be available to answer questions and provide insight into the planning and construction process.
Located on a lushly landscaped site, situated between the two sister communities of Winter Park and Maitland, the Park Maitland School has undergoing significant changes as they celebrate their 35th year. The commitment to the quality of education is reflected in new facilities and expansion of the school campus. Over the last several years the school has taken steps to expand and improve their facilities. The process has included land acquisition, development of a comprehensive master plan which has resulted in a Developer’s Agreement with the city of Maitland [ratified in early 2003] which outlines the growth for the campus over the next ten years. The first two major projects reflect the schools
continued commitment to excellence in education. They represent a significant addition to the campus architecture and educational environment. The design of these projects is a final step in the long awaited dream of giving new form and shape to the exemplary academic experience.
The new designs for Park Maitland must create efficient high quality learning environments that both blend in with the existing architectural vocabulary of the campus architecture and at the same time establish a new identity for the school. And in accomplishing these two
seemingly disparate tasks, the buildings should express a youthful almost playful spirit - acknowledging that the primary users are children.
Edgewater High School
C.T Hsu + Associates earned the Award of Honor from AIA CAE for their work on Edgewater High School. Rene Alvarez, an architect from C.T. Hsu + Associates who worked on the project, will be joining the tour to answer any questions and speak about the facility.
Edgewater High School, one of two original Orlando heritage schools dating back to the early 50’s, was due a general overhaul to upgrade, expand, and house state-of-the-art facilities for a new 21st century urban high school. It’s presence on Main Street and its historical imprint as a landmark in the community made for an interesting and often intense discussion and consensus effort.
The expanded site accommodated the new buildings and facilitated phasing shortening the construction schedule and allowing school operations to continue uninterrupted. The design for this new urban high school reinterprets the large often desolate courtyards so prevalent in Florida high schools today by collapsing the open space and turning it vertically to form an internalized academic spine. The spine is anchored by the gym and music facilities at one end and the administration and auditorium at the front of the school at the other end along Main Street. At the center of this three-story day-lit atrium is the campus commons with the media center overlooking the cafeteria and outdoor dining function at ground level. Three story classroom wings are organized along the axis allowing all instructional spaces to receive natural light. The compact partie optimizes internal communication and supervision while maximizing exterior space for on-campus community events, athletic facilities and parking.
Building Highlights:
Building Area: 408,100 SF
323,800 SF New Construction
84,300 SF Remodeled Space