Tucson, Arizona, USA
Richärd Kennedy Architects join forces with GLHN Architects and Engineers to create a cutting-edge environmental teaching and science laboratory that compelled a fundamental response to regional context, community, ecology, and the environment for the University of Arizona campus.
The design draws from the iconic imagery of Arizona’s striking canyon and mesa landforms, with their dramatic interplay of light and shadow, which is why it has been awarded a 2021 International Architecture Award by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.
These natural forms are reflected in the building’s canyon-like courtyard and dynamic facade, tying it to the powerful and evocative sequence of the desert slot canyon.
The site was a surface parking lot flanked by the existing environmental and natural sciences office building to the west and a parking garage to the east.
Mass walls with limited openings on east and west were a primary driver of the form, addressing exposure and adjacency to existing structures, as was creating a connection to the existing ENR1 building and parking garage.
The facade completes the street edge by aligning with the perimeter of the site.
The ground plane design responds to pedestrian circulation patterns both along the edges and through the site. Reconnecting the building occupants with the natural environment was a fundamental goal of the design approach.
The cafeteria opens to the central canyon at the ground level, providing for the important social interaction and interdisciplinary mixing that is critical in the contemporary research environment.
Office areas are connected vertically with two-story communicating stairs, which allow for internal circulation and flexible assignment of space between complementary research departments.
Primary circulation was pulled out of the building envelope and moved to tempered, exterior spaces, reducing indoor program areas and forming outdoor terraces and access points to shared learning labs.
Each planter contains a series of drains allowing recirculated water to drip from planter above to planter below slowly. This reduces water waste, further activates the canyon, and showcases the presence of this precious natural resource.
ENR2 has earned LEED platinum certification by maintaining 100% reclaimed irrigation water, 95% of precipitation managed onsite, and 35% potable water reduction.
It continues to exceed projected reductions in water and energy consumption. The unique environment of ENR2 has established a diverse desert ecosystem featuring local plants of the Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts.
Project: Environmental and Natural Resources 2: University of Arizona
Architects: Richärd Kennedy Architects
Architects of Record: GLHN Architects and Engineers, Inc.
Landscape Architects: Colwell Schelor
Client: University of Arizona
General Contractor: Hensel Phelps Construction
Photographers: Bill Timmerman, Liam Fredrick, and Marion Brenner
