San Francisco, CA, 2012

Architect: Smithgroup / Jim Jennings Architecture

This LEED Gold project consists of a state-of-the-art approximately 140,000 square foot laboratory research building, a one acre, central courtyard, and campus entry plaza. A key priority in the landscape design is to create a courtyard that fosters interaction amongst scientists. Evoking the site’s historic salt marsh ecology, the design for the courtyard incorporates native grasses to filter and absorb stormwater runoff. The planting breaks down the plaza’s scale, buffering winds from the nearby bay and defining areas for group meetings, informal recreation, lounging and more intimate seating. Eddies off the main walkways are furnished with tables and chairs to encourage interaction with the larger campus community. In addition to the courtyard, ACLA developed a new, bold entrance to the campus to welcome visitors from downtown and Mission Bay with an allee of palm trees, seating, and lights. A twenty-foot limestone pillar announces entry into the campus.

photography: Bruce Damonte, Marion Brenner