CSUMB REC. CENTER

EDUCATION/SPORTS. ARCHITECTURE AT ZERO COMPETITION. CSU MONTEREY BAY, CA. 2019

The Architecture at Zero competition challenge was to create a zero net energy recreation center at the campus of California State University at Monterey Bay. To design two new buildings that will be constructed in two phases and will replace two existing buildings and parts of two parking lots. I first created a site plan that would accommodate the program and address both the topography and the climate conditions of the site. Based on that I provided passive sustainable architectural strategies that would create an overall energy-efficient system.

First I decided to keep the building as close to the ground as possible and as short in height as possible, this was done to both harness the geothermal cooling potential of the site and to provide enough landscape to capture water/moisture that would be used throughout the building. The second decision was to place all fitness and sport-related activity programs on the bottom floors and all academic/office programs on the top floors, this was done to harness the heat produced by such activities and use it to heat the above program through the natural process of rising heat. Also to mediate/enhance the transference of heat I placed skylights/chimneys throughout the building that would allow the heat as it rises to be captured or released. The third and last decision was to simplify the geometry (basically two rectangular boxes) of both buildings in order to create a more efficient distribution of energy, which is then enhanced by the terracotta skin façade. A terracotta rain screen will provide the building with better energy performance.