Design West Studio a Study of Its City

Berkeley City College’s Skylighted Quad Earns LEED Silver
Urban infill campus’ design and sustainable elements help teach outside of the classroom
Berkeley City College, the first California single-building community college campus constructed on an urban infill site, recently earned a LEED™ Silver certification rating. The six-story, 165,000 square-foot earthtoned curtain wall building was designed by Ratcliff with a six-story, skylighted atrium that serves as a campus quad. The atrium is topped by a skylight that filters light throughout the building. The college also shares space with other city entities, such as the University of California Berkeley campus, the local public library, the city’s repertory theater, city hall, an adjacent YMCA, and Berkeley High School. The facility, which opened for 2007 at a cost of $46 million, has 30 modular classrooms and labs that can accommodate for changes in teaching and technology.

Bridgewater Place Enhances Wellness for a New Style of Senior Living
The national architecture firm, Dorsky Hodgson Parrish Yue Architects (DHPY) has recently completed construction of Bridgewater Place, a 260,000-square-foot, six-story, 170-unit continuing care retirement community (CCRC) that is repositioning for the future the existing Friendship Village of Schaumburg, Ill. What makes the development unique? A design that reflects the wants and needs of a new generation of baby-boomer seniors, blends senior living into the surrounding community, and enhances wellness by connecting residents with each other and the outdoors.