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Anschutz Commons Building
Anschutz Commons Building
30, Birch Street, Denver, CO, United States
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Other Projects by Semple Brown Design, P.C.
Anschutz Commons Building
30, Birch Street, Denver, CO, United States
Type
YEAR
2011
SIZE
10,000 sqft - 25,000 sqft
BUDGET
$1M - 5M
The Anschutz Commons building is part of the 7-acre Graland Country Day
School Campus, a private K-8 educational institution established in
1924. Anschutz Commons is located at the heart of the campus – that
truly engages the architectural guidelines established by Jacques
Benedict reaffirming the strong design unity on the campus. The new
15,000 square foot state-of-the-art building is anticipated to earn a
LEED Gold certification.
The school’s motivating factors for a new dining/student commons space
were driven by the desire to provide improved nutritional meals and a
setting to teach students about healthy choices. Another factor was
capacity – the new building improves capacity up to 650 students which
allows for larger blocks of instructional time and smoother transitions
for younger students.
Key goals for the project included:
• LEED Gold requirements
• 9 month schedule
• $3.5 million dollar budget (15,000 square foot building)
• Meeting strict architectural campus guidelines
• Full service kitchen which allows the school to further control the
nutritional level of the food being served to their students
• Flexible special event space.
Graland Country Day School was originally located in the Denver
countryside. Its founders’ original concept for the school was a
“country day school with plenty of open space, sunshine and fresh air.”
The city has grown to the edges of the original site. The campus has
many aesthetically pleasing open spaces that serve as physical and
visual respite from the otherwise busy campus. Teachers from all
disciplines and grades frequently bring their students outdoors during
classes making the play spaces and the open spaces between the buildings
critical to the quality of student life on campus.
The architects took great care to maintain the existing character of
the campus and the quality of the outdoor space while special attention
was given to reducing the overall massing of the new two-story building.
The impact of taller structures is minimized by carving the lower level
into the site; and minimizing the ceiling/floor structural depth. As a
result, the new Anschutz Commons nestles in against the larger gymnasium
building and gently frames views of the campus and gardens.
The team was also able to design specific yet flexible spaces in the
new building to serve the largest population possible, whether that is
the outside community or the school community. The dining hall space can
accommodate presentations, dances, receptions as well as the cafeteria
set up that it is used daily for classroom activities. The south facing
glass façade provides an abundance of natural daylight into the dining
hall; opening towards the patio it will allow the school to hold larger
functions and student gatherings. The natural daylight was a key goal
for the lower level of the building as well – the team made sure the
classrooms were not in a “dungeon” basement type of environment. Each of
the 650 square foot classrooms on the west side have been provided with
views towards the playing field while the east classrooms have a
lightwell that filters natural daylight throughout the day.
One of the major challenges the team faced was budget. The project team
worked diligently to design responsibly and sustainably within a fixed
cost. The project and cost were refined over an evaluation process to
achieve the best solution for the best price while being responsive to
the Graland campus aesthetic and responsible to the donors. One example
of weighing cost versus a sustainable decision was to re-use the roof
tiles from the existing building on the new Commons building.All photographs Copyright Miller Photography
School Campus, a private K-8 educational institution established in
1924. Anschutz Commons is located at the heart of the campus – that
truly engages the architectural guidelines established by Jacques
Benedict reaffirming the strong design unity on the campus. The new
15,000 square foot state-of-the-art building is anticipated to earn a
LEED Gold certification.
The school’s motivating factors for a new dining/student commons space
were driven by the desire to provide improved nutritional meals and a
setting to teach students about healthy choices. Another factor was
capacity – the new building improves capacity up to 650 students which
allows for larger blocks of instructional time and smoother transitions
for younger students.
Key goals for the project included:
• LEED Gold requirements
• 9 month schedule
• $3.5 million dollar budget (15,000 square foot building)
• Meeting strict architectural campus guidelines
• Full service kitchen which allows the school to further control the
nutritional level of the food being served to their students
• Flexible special event space.
Graland Country Day School was originally located in the Denver
countryside. Its founders’ original concept for the school was a
“country day school with plenty of open space, sunshine and fresh air.”
The city has grown to the edges of the original site. The campus has
many aesthetically pleasing open spaces that serve as physical and
visual respite from the otherwise busy campus. Teachers from all
disciplines and grades frequently bring their students outdoors during
classes making the play spaces and the open spaces between the buildings
critical to the quality of student life on campus.
The architects took great care to maintain the existing character of
the campus and the quality of the outdoor space while special attention
was given to reducing the overall massing of the new two-story building.
The impact of taller structures is minimized by carving the lower level
into the site; and minimizing the ceiling/floor structural depth. As a
result, the new Anschutz Commons nestles in against the larger gymnasium
building and gently frames views of the campus and gardens.
The team was also able to design specific yet flexible spaces in the
new building to serve the largest population possible, whether that is
the outside community or the school community. The dining hall space can
accommodate presentations, dances, receptions as well as the cafeteria
set up that it is used daily for classroom activities. The south facing
glass façade provides an abundance of natural daylight into the dining
hall; opening towards the patio it will allow the school to hold larger
functions and student gatherings. The natural daylight was a key goal
for the lower level of the building as well – the team made sure the
classrooms were not in a “dungeon” basement type of environment. Each of
the 650 square foot classrooms on the west side have been provided with
views towards the playing field while the east classrooms have a
lightwell that filters natural daylight throughout the day.
One of the major challenges the team faced was budget. The project team
worked diligently to design responsibly and sustainably within a fixed
cost. The project and cost were refined over an evaluation process to
achieve the best solution for the best price while being responsive to
the Graland campus aesthetic and responsible to the donors. One example
of weighing cost versus a sustainable decision was to re-use the roof
tiles from the existing building on the new Commons building.All photographs Copyright Miller Photography
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