By Don Tomasi AIA

TLCD Architecture’s downtown Santa Rosa Luther Burbank Savings Headquarters Branch project is beginning to change colors, going from bright yellow to black. The “black’ is a spray-applied waterproof membrane, the first installation step of an innovative building exterior referred to as a “rear-ventilated rainscreen” system. The black waterproof membrane will keep the building watertight.

In the next few weeks black aluminum channels will be installed over this membrane, then overlaid with stunning wood veneered panels. The panels will be attached to the aluminum from behind, with no visible fasteners. Since the waterproof membrane will keep the building dry, these panels serve a function that is strictly aesthetic. The space between the waterproof membrane is “ventilated” and is open at the top, bottom, and at panel joints. In the case of this project, the freedom to design exterior panels with open joints and without any visible means of attachment allows for a precise, clean aesthetic.

Tim Maloney of Technical Imagery Studios in Santa Rosa is documenting the construction of Luther Burbank Savings Headquarters Branch with time sequence photography.  This “time-lapse” documentation of the construction process can be viewed at:

http://www.technicalimagery.com/proofs/lbs031212/

Cycling is such a big part of our culture in Sonoma County and this weekend Santa Rosa will host the start of the Amgen Tour of California. TLCD Architecture is thrilled to be a sponsor of this premier event with the Museum on the Square Project Team. The team of Wright Contracting, TLCD Architecture, Summit Engineering, Quadriga Landscape Architecture, MKM Structural Engineers, and Gilleran Energy Management invites friends, family and colleagues to join us at the VIP Spectator Tent on May 13th between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm. You’ll find our tent near the Beer Garden at 5th Street and Mendocino Avenue. Don’t miss out on the fun… be there!

TLCD Architecture is thrilled to be a regular sponsor and participant in Sonoma County’s annual Human Race. As the largest event of it’s kind in the United States, the Human Race is a great way to support local charities and non-profits. On Saturday, May 5th, the TLCD “hydrating” squad (Suzanne, Bill, Jaime and Marina) passed out water and cheered on the runners and walkers as they passed the last marker for the 10k event!

On Tuesday, May 1^st TLCD Architecture’s DeTurk Round Barn received two prestigious design awards.  At the City of Santa Rosa’s afternoon city council meeting a California Parks and Recreation Society representative presented its annual facility award to the City and TLCD Architecture.  Later that same evening the Structural Engineers Association of Northern California (SEAONC) presented an Award of Merit in the Excellence in Engineering Awards program to MKM Structural Engineers.

Built in 1891 for a prized racehorse, the DeTurk Round Barn is one of only two true round barns remaining in California and is listed on both the state and federal registries of historic places. After decades of use as a city corporation yard, this unique adaptive reuse project seismically upgraded and restored the building to its new life as a Community Center. During construction the entire barn was raised on hydraulic lifts for several months to allow construction of concrete foundations and a floor slab. In order to preserve the historic integrity of the barn, all interior wood framing was left exposed; no insulation or interior finishes were added. Existing redwood posts or beams that could not be reused, were re-milled into paneling at the stairwells.

The renovated building features a stunning, circular ground floor and open mezzanine totaling more than 7,500 square feet. The space accommodates weddings, receptions, parties, meetings and other special events. A catering kitchen, restrooms, and elevator were added, along with a high-tech audio-visual system featuring multiple projectors and a curved 18–foot screen. A radiant floor slab provides heat to the un-insulated historic building, and a 24-foot diameter overhead fan provides air circulation.

The TLCD/CSW Foursome

TLCD Architecture and CSW/Stuber-Stroeh Engineering Group joined together on Monday, April 23rd as cart sponsors for the 2nd Annual Golf Tournament for the San Mateo Community College Foundation. Stephen Peakes and Brian Wright from TLCD, and Jim Keller and Jim Grossi from CSW teamed up for a very respectable 7 under par at the beautiful Stanford University golf course. The tournament is a fundraiser that goes towards scholarships and educational programs for the students of the 3-campus San Mateo Community College District.

The 21^st Century Classroom, one that focuses on the Four C’s; Communication, Creativity, Collaboration, and Critical Thinking was the main topic of discussion at the inaugural Napa Valley Education Exchange, a three day conference that I was able to attend last week in Napa.  The conference attendees included school district superintendents and educators from all over the State of California.

We were treated to very informative and inspirational presentations from education futurists Dr. Yong Zhao, Ken Kay, and Dr. Pat Wolfe.  The presentations were focused on the current state of our education system and how it needs to be changed in order to support the learning needs of our current and future students.

This conference was especially interesting as I was able to learn about many of the challenges being faced by school districts.  As architects, we play an important role in developing educational environments that are inspirational to those who use them.  Flexible classroom spaces that incorporate advanced technology, flexible furniture, natural daylighting, fresh air, and good acoustics are critical elements of today’s classroom.

John Dybczak AIA

How do you cool a historic round barn built in 1891 without extensive air conditioning systems? With a modern, high efficiency 24 foot diameter fan of course! Big Ass Fans features the DeTurk Round Barn in it’s current “Donkey Tales” newsletter.

The City of Santa Rosa Recreation, Parks and Community Services Department worked with TLCD Architecture to lovingly renovate the DeTurk Round Barn, one of only two true round barns remaining in California.

Marina Starkey, Marketing Director

Li Ka Shing Center at Stanford. Site of the 2012 SCUP Pacific Region Conference

Having just returned from the Society of College and University Planners (SCUP) Pacific Regional Conference at Stanford University, it’s my opinion that that SCUP puts on some of the best meetings I’ve ever attended.  With attendance limited, the conference is much more collegial than most. It’s a nice blend of design professionals and college and university planners – all of whom are extremely friendly.  Within a day you begin to greet familiar faces and occasionally someone will come up and say: “Didn’t I see you in Seattle last year?”

During the course of the conference, the attendees met in the Li Ka Shing Center in the Stanford Medical School, a fabulous new teaching center with some of the most advanced instructional technology around. It was nice to rub elbows with medical students rather than be in an anonymous hotel ballroom. Two Norman Foster buildings on the new Medical School Quadrangle bracketed the center where we met.

In addition to touring the facilities on the Stanford campus, I went on tours of the new UCSF Mission Bay campus and the Google campus in Mountain View.

At UCSF we learned about the layering of public and interactive space from macro to micro scale. New lab buildings serving 500- 600 staff are designed so that researchers, often immersed in very individual projects, will encounter each other on a regular basis. The center focuses on cross-disciplinary discovery and “translational” research facilities that link research to ground floor clinics serving patients.

At Google I learned that if you are lucky enough to get a job there, you might never buy groceries or cook again! Goggle provides up to three full free meals a day, unlimited snacks in the Micro Kitchens on each floor and has 26 cafes on the Mountain View campus. I never realized that there were 15,000 people in Mountain View helping to answer my “Google” enquiries.  This is not to mention their offices in 60 countries.

The individual presentations during the conference proper were informative and generally fast paced, providing a lot of information about master planning and higher education facility design. The three days I spent there were totally engaging and I came back with lots of information to share with our team at TLCD Architecture.

Flamingos devouring T-Rex at the Googleplex in Mountain View

UCSF Mission Bay Campus

The project’s two classroom buildings, comprised of five kindergarten classrooms, 24 primary classrooms, a library, a computer lab, and administrative offices are connected by a two story bridge of steel and glass.  Along with the new Classroom Buildings and the Multi-Purpose Building there will be new play fields, play structures, site landscaping, parking, a bus drop off and street improvements.  Upon completion, this school will serve approximately 740 students.

Classes are slated to begin on August 20th.  With a project completion date of June 30th, we are all pushing hard to get this project completed on time.  There will be much to accomplish between the construction completion date and the start of school.  The contractor will need to finish their punch list, the classrooms and offices have to be outfitted with furniture and the teachers and administrators have to move in and organize their classrooms in preparation for school to begin.  The project team – Lathrop Construction Associates, Inc. (General Contractor), Counterpoint Construction Services, Inc. (Construction Manager), the District and TLCD, have worked together to meet this goal.  The team is pushing forward to make timely decisions and give timely responses to questions, maintain a high quality of work and remain sensitive to the project’s design and the Districts needs.  Many difficult decisions have been made to pull this project together.  But hey, this is construction!