University News

 

Seattle University to unveil its first green “gathering place”
Building design a clear demonstration of commitment to sustainability and the neighborhood

SEATTLE, October 16, 2009 – Seattle University tomorrow marks a milestone in its campus design and commitment to community with the unveiling of its new Admissions and Alumni (A&A) Building, a showcase of the university’s mission of service and its policy of sustainable building.
 
The public event, on Saturday at 3 p.m., will be attended by the news media, neighbors and representatives of Squire Park Community Council, the 12th Avenue Stewardship Community and community organizations. It will include remarks by President Stephen Sundborg, S.J., Seattle City Council President Richard Conlin and a tour showing how the 33-year-old building was transformed into one of the best examples of green design in the city.
 
The A&A Building is the university’s new meeting place for prospective and current students, alumni and the larger community. The building represents a significant ongoing and positive shift in the university’s physical relationship to its neighborhood. It is also one of the greenest buildings on Capitol Hill—a recycled structure meeting some of the highest standards for sustainability. The A&A Building represents a $7 million investment from SU and showcases the university’s commitment to sustainable design and neighborhood partnerships.
 
“This building truly represents Seattle University to our campus and our neighbors,” said SU President Stephen Sundborg, S.J. “We want to be seen as a welcoming place and an asset to the community.”
 
Since 1891, Seattle University land west of 12th Avenue and the Squire Park neighborhood and most of the university’s early buildings were designed to face inward to campus. Seattle University’s new buildings, including the A&A Building, Lee Center for the Arts and the School of Law, embrace the neighborhood.
 
The building is designed to be part of 12th Avenue’s vibrant street life, with rest and lunch spots outdoors and floor to ceiling windows that display a busy work and meeting space both day and night. A large conference room is available for use by request, and has already been used by neighborhood and community groups. At night, highly-efficient lighting will function as a welcoming beacon to pedestrians, students and neighbors.
 
True to its name, the A&A Building will be a space for alumni to gather and connect while providing an open, welcoming starting point for prospective students. The entry area features an exhibit entitled “Mission in Action,” featuring rotating profiles of alumni, students, faculty and staff. The “Women Empowered” exhibit in the Kinsey Gallery displays stunning photography by Phil Borges and highlights extraordinary women from Asia, Africa and South America.
 
Seattle University has a nationally recognized commitment to sustainability, winning the Sustainability Innovator Award in 2007 from the Sustainable Endowments Institute and the Green Washington Award in 2008 from Washington CEO Magazine. The Princeton Review’s 2009 Green Rating gave the school a 97 out of a possible 99. The new A&A continues that policy. Some 20 green features in the building include a roof that collects and filters rainwater, natural ventilation, drought-tolerant native landscaping, natural lighting and photovoltaic panels. The structure itself is a recycled warehouse, with 90 percent of the new building’s materials coming from the older building. The university anticipates receiving a Gold certification from the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System. The architect for the project is James Cary.
 
The A&A Building is located at 824 12th Ave. on the Seattle University campus. For more information on the event, visit the Seattle University Web site (www.seattleu.edu).

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To experience an interactive tour of the building, visit
http://www.seattleu.edu/Connections/display.aspx?id=50235
 
The A&A Building’s green features can be viewed in greater detail at http://jamescaryarchitect.com/Sustainability.pdf
 
Media contact:  Casey Corr, cell: (206) 931-4783

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