AUSTIN, TEXAS, March 22, 2011 – The new Student Activity Center (SAC) at the University of Texas campus in Austin is of the students, by the students, and for the students. The SAC is the result of almost 60 years of student lobbying for another dedicated social and cultural center on campus. Located in the heart of the campus, this 149,000 square foot facility is designed to serve as the “campus living room” – it is a place for students “to see and be seen”. The facility should earn a LEED Gold certification, a first for the campus.
Extensive student input and design workshops generated the main project goals, which were easy accessibility, more activity spaces and overall sustainability. Overland Partners Architects of San Antonio, TX and associate architect WTW Architects of Pittsburgh, PA responded with a contemporary building on the East Mall of campus, the primary pedestrian point of entry to the campus. The new SAC is geographically and functionally complementary to the existing student union on the West Mall, and important in serving the growing student body.
To meet the student goal of dedicated activity spaces, the SAC includes a 5,000 square foot ballroom, a 500-seat auditorium, a black box theatre, 12 student conference/meeting rooms, student organization offices, and a student government chamber. The ballroom is already booked for months with events like comedian Zach Braff, a 3-D Gaming tournament, and a concert by Chuck D. and Common. There are also ample group study lounges and informal individual study areas scattered throughout the facility. An indoor food court featuring regional fast food favorites and a coffee bar sits adjacent to more than 46,000 square feet of landscaped outdoor gathering space, substantially increasing the seating and providing an enjoyable dining experience in the moderate Austin climate.
The new SAC has struck a powerful chord at the university in response to project goals.
“I have to say that a mark of any successful building is how it makes one wonder how we managed without it,” Juan González, Vice-President for Student Affairs, said. “It is truly a major enhancement to not only the area, but the whole campus environment. It is especially rewarding to see so many students embrace the facility from the moment we opened the doors.”
The SAC is a modern take on the traditional campus architecture. The simple forms and clean lines of the SAC distinguish it, yet the limestone walls and red tile roofs unify it with the existing campus buildings. Tucked behind a mature oak grove, abundant windows throughout the building bring in ample daylighting and take advantage of the surrounding landscape. There is an accessible rooftop courtyard with an adjacent green roof, and a cistern that collects and recycles rainwater for landscape irrigation.
Renowned international artist James Turrell is designing a skyspace installation for the SAC opening in fall 2012. The enclosed rooftop space will have an opening in the roof surrounded by LED lights that will affect the viewer’s perception of the sky.
The project has only been open since January, yet students are already using every available inch of space. Early student reviews of the SAC are glowing.
“I went to peak at the new structure, and OH MAN. It’s awesome. Though we have the Union, academic center, and library, UT always lacked a central place where students could take a break between places, grab a bite to eat, nap, cram for a test, or hold student org meetings. The SAC provides all of the above and with style,” according to one UT student blog.
About Overland Partners
Overland Partners Architects, founded in 1987 in San Antonio, Texas, is the realization of a vision to bring together a wide range of talents in architecture and planning in order to provide comprehensive design services. Sensitive to the environmental and aesthetic contexts of its projects, the firm strives for a thoughtful integration of technology, art, and craft through highly sustainable solutions. Overland Partners offers its clients the ultimate goal of creating beautiful, functional and enduring designs through a collaborative process that inspires long-term relationships. In addition to the Student Activity Center at the University of Texas the firm is currently working on the university’s new College of Liberal Arts. The firm completed the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at the University of Texas in Austin, winner of more than 10 regional and national design awards. Other higher education projects within the firm’s design portfolio include the new Business School Building at Baylor University in Waco, Texas; the new Academic Building at the University of North Texas at Dallas; the new Continuing Education Center at Rice University in Houston; and the School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture at Pennsylvania State University in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Related Stories
| Nov 29, 2010
Data Centers: Keeping Energy, Security in Check
Power consumption for data centers doubled from 2000 and 2006, and it is anticipated to double again by 2011, making these mission-critical facilities the nation’s largest commercial user of electric power. Major technology companies, notably Hewlett-Packard, Cisco Systems, and International Business Machines, are investing heavily in new data centers. HP, which acquired technology services provider EDS in 2008, announced in June that it would be closing many of its older data centers and would be building new, more highly optimized centers around the world.
| Nov 29, 2010
New Design Concepts for Elementary and Secondary Schools
Hard hit by the economy, new construction in the K-12 sector has slowed considerably over the past year. Yet innovation has continued, along with renovations and expansions. Today, Building Teams are showing a keener focus on sustainable design, as well as ways to improve indoor environmental quality (IEQ), daylighting, and low-maintenance finishes such as flooring.
| Nov 29, 2010
Renovating for Sustainability
Motivated by the prospect of increased property values, reduced utility bills, and an interest in jumping on the sustainability bandwagon, a noted upturn in green building upgrades is helping designers and real estate developers stay busy while waiting for the economy to recover. In fact, many of the larger property management outfits have set up teams to undertake projects seeking LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance (LEED-EBOM, also referred to as LEED-EB), a certification by the U.S. Green Building Council.
| Nov 23, 2010
The George W. Bush Presidential Center, which will house the former president’s library
The George W. Bush Presidential Center, which will house the former president’s library and museum, plus the Bush Institute, is aiming for LEED Platinum. The 226,565-sf center, located at Southern Methodist University, in Dallas, was designed by architect Robert A.M. Stern and landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh.
| Nov 23, 2010
Honeywell's School Energy and Environment Survey: 68% of districts delayed or eliminated improvements because of economy
Results of Honeywell's second annual “School Energy and Environment Survey” reveal that almost 90% of school leaders see a direct link between the quality and performance of school facilities, and student achievement. However, districts face several obstacles when it comes to keeping their buildings up to date and well maintained. For example, 68% of school districts have either delayed or eliminated building improvements in response to the economic downturn.
| Nov 16, 2010
Architecture Billings Index: inquiries for new projects remain extremely high
The new projects inquiry index was 61.7, down slightly from a nearly three-year high mark of 62.3 in September, according to the Architecture Billings Index (ABI). However, the ABI dropped nearly two points in October; the October ABI score was 48.7, down from a reading of 50.4 the previous month. The ABI reflects the approximate nine to 12 month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending.
| Nov 16, 2010
Brazil Olympics spurring green construction
Brazil's green building industry will expand in the coming years, spurred by construction of low-impact venues being built for the 2016 Olympics. The International Olympic Committee requires arenas built for the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro meet international standards for low-carbon emissions and energy efficiency. This has boosted local interest in developing real estate with lower environmental impact than existing buildings. The timing couldn’t be better: the Brazilian government is just beginning its long-term infrastructure expansion program.
| Nov 16, 2010
Green building market grows 50% in two years; Green Outlook 2011 report
The U.S. green building market is up 50% from 2008 to 2010—from $42 billion to $55 billion-$71 billion, according to McGraw-Hill Construction's Green Outlook 2011: Green Trends Driving Growth report. Today, a third of all new nonresidential construction is green; in five years, nonresidential green building activity is expected to triple, representing $120 billion to $145 billion in new construction.
| Nov 16, 2010
Calculating office building performance? Yep, there’s an app for that
123 Zero build is a free tool for calculating the performance of a market-ready carbon-neutral office building design. The app estimates the discounted payback for constructing a zero emissions office building in any U.S. location, including the investment needed for photovoltaics to offset annual carbon emissions, payback calculations, estimated first costs for a highly energy efficient building, photovoltaic costs, discount rates, and user-specified fuel escalation rates.
