Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

University of Arizona

Sonoran Landscape Laboratory

  • 11/01/13
University of Arizona

PHOTOS © TEN EYCK LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS, INC. / PHOTOGRAPHER: BILL TIMMERMAN

To further its mission, the College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (CALA) at the University of Arizona in Tucson built a new expansion facility that allows students from all three design disciplines (architecture, landscape architecture and planning) the opportunity to work side-by-side in an integrated studio environment.

The site also performs as an ongoing laboratory and demonstration facility for sustainable design in the arid southwest. The new building provided an opportunity for Ten Eyck Landscape Architects to create a high-performance landscape functioning as an outdoor classroom and an entry plaza gathering space. The Sonoran Landscape Laboratory exemplifies the sustainable strategies of water harvesting and reuse, climate regulation, air and water cleansing, all in a thriving desert habitat within an urban campus context.

At the entry plaza, a perforated metal bridge allows water to flow through the space. An accessible, sunken outdoor classroom of permeable stabilized granite provides a place for student study, building projects and gathering.

A vine-covered scrim helps to shade the southern exposure of CALA’s addition while an 11,000-gallon tank collects storm water, gray water and HVAC condensate to support the native garden, resulting in an annual water savings of 86 percent.

The project increased the biomass of the site by 50 percent. The resulting urban wildlife habitat has attracted many species of birds, including hawks searching for ground mammals and reptiles in the garden. The pond is home for endangered fish and is listed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as a Safe Harbor urban site.

The project won a National ASLA Honor Award, an Arizona ASLA Award of Excellence and an Arizona ASLA President’s Award

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management November 2013 issue of Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Image courtesy of Kahler Slater

    UW–Madison Announces Completion of Morgridge Hall

    The University of Wisconsin–Madison recently announced that construction is complete on Morgridge Hall, a new academic building, according to a news release. The facility opened September 3 at the start of the fall semester, consolidating the School of Computer, Data & Information Sciences into a single facility for the first time.

  • Northeastern University Breaks Ground on New Housing Community

    Northeastern University recently announced the groundbreaking of a new student housing community on its campus in Boston, Mass., according to a news release. The university is partnering with American Campus Communities (ACC) for development of the project, which will have the capacity for 1,200 students and has a scheduled completion date of fall 2028.

  • Stanford Completes Construction on Graduate School of Education Facility

    Stanford University in Stanford, Calif., recently announced the end of construction on a new home for its Graduate School of Education, according to a news release. The university partnered with McCarthy Building Companies on the 160,000-square-foot project, which involved two major renovations and one new construction effort.

  • Pitzer College

    Designing for Change in Higher Ed Learning Environments

    Higher education will continue to evolve, and learning environments must evolve with it. By prioritizing adaptable infrastructure, thoughtful reuse, strong energy performance, and wellness-centered design, campuses can create spaces that support learning today while remaining flexible for the future.