Kirsch Center for Environmental Studies, De Anza College, Cupertino (Silicon Valley), California

• Established with faculty and staff the overall design goals for the project
• Co-facilitated design charettes with faculty and a series of design workshops with engineers to integrate technical and aesthetic options at an early design stage
• Assembled the conceptual and schematic design

*LEED Platinum certified (first community college LEED platinum building in the nation)

*Winner of the 2006 AIA-SF Energy and Sustainability
Design Citation Award

*Winner, First place of U.C. Berkeley’s Center for the Built
Environment’s 2007 National “Livable Buildings Awards” for its “exceptional performance in occupant satisfaction, resource efficiency, and overall design”.
Jury Comments: “The Kirsch Center has so many ratings in the top 100 percentile. Does it get better than this? And it has acoustical, comfort, and air quality scores just not heard of in almost any building. It looks like a very, very livable building indeed.”

the big ideas

• this building is unique in that ½ of the building is designed for natural ventilation only and the other half uses forced air ventilation with a raised floor
• electrical energy use is projected to be at least 88% lower than a comparable building which meets California’s 2001 Title 24 energy standards
• widened hallways to 12' so that they could double as informal class spaces

“The kids want to be here. They don’t want to leave. It’s gone beyond all our expectations.”
Julie Phillips, Director, Environmental Studies Department

As one of the first examples of a sustainable “green” building in the California Community College system, the 22,000 sq. ft Kirsch Center for Environmental Studies is an opportunity to showcase energy efficiency and renewable energy technology to a large audience. It will provide the momentum for other community colleges to design and construct sustainable buildings as well as use these standards on renovation projects.
Mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire engineers - Arup.
Structural engineers - Dasse.

Main entry plaza with light shelves and sun canopies.

First floor plan (no A/C on the west wing; raised floor plenum on the east wing)

Second floor plan