Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s newest addition to its campus, The William and Linda Frost Center for Research and Innovation, is currently under construction.
The four-story, 103,800-sf Center is dedicated to undergraduate students who engage in faculty-mentored research each year and work side-by-side with professors. The Frost Center will bring three colleges together under one roof: the College of Liberal Arts, the College of Science and Mathematics, and the College of Agriculture, Food, and Environmental Sciences. It is designed to support the educational priorities of a growing student and faculty population, promote interdisciplinary communities, and provide academic space.
Included within the building are 19 flexible laboratory and teaching spaces, large general-purpose classrooms, collaboration areas, faculty/staff offices, a recording studio, editing bays, a high-end computer lab, and a teaching kitchen. The teaching kitchen is showcased on the first floor and is highly visible from the atrium.
The modularly planned laboratories provide flexibility for any future changes and can be combined to produce large, open laboratories or subdivided to produce small instrument or special-use laboratories. A “big room” for the College of Liberal Arts will give students a space where they can create, perform, test, record, and display their work for passersby along the adjacent hallways and exterior pathways.
Passive design strategies and natural ventilation will create a healthy building for occupants. 100% outside air from air handling units and operable windows in offices allow the building to avoid the recirculation of air that might provide an avenue for airborne exposure to viruses such as COVID-19.
The project is designed to achieve LEED Gold and includes sustainable features such as passive heating and cooling strategies, will consume 30% less potable water, and will have the capacity to accommodate future rooftop solar panels.
See Also: Apartments and condos occupy what was once a five-story car dealership
The William and Linda Frost Center for Research and Innovation is slated for completion in late 2021.
Related Stories
University Buildings | May 29, 2019
Gonzaga University’s Myrtle Woldson Performing Arts Center opens
New building includes interactive exhibit in tribute to the center’s donor.
University Buildings | May 17, 2019
Designing for the next generation of student life
When a prospective student evaluates an institution, they are imagining whether they can see themselves there as an individual.
Healthcare Facilities | May 16, 2019
ASU Health Futures Center combines a novel design and approach to learning
The trapezoidal shape of the building is an eco-friendly feature.
University Buildings | May 8, 2019
Victory Drive Student Housing project will bring 650 beds to Savannah College of Art and Design
The project will utilize the design-build resources of Clayco and BatesForum.
University Buildings | May 7, 2019
Center for Engineering, Innovation, and Sciences opens on Wentworth Institute of Technology’s Boston campus
Leers Weinzapfel Associates designed the building.
University Buildings | Apr 29, 2019
‘One Harvard’ initiative injects new life into campus center
The university’s Smith Campus Center now offers a centralized gathering place with several dining options.
University Buildings | Apr 24, 2019
Teaching on the cutting edge of design
University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign Campus Instructional Facility will celebrate and foster creativity and interdisciplinary cooperation.
University Buildings | Apr 22, 2019
An old warehouse building becomes the new Campus Center at Springfield Technical Community College
Ann Beha Architects designed the building.
University Buildings | Apr 19, 2019
Curtin University library redevelopment will modernize iconic campus structure
Brutalist structure to be softened with redesign by Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects.
University Buildings | Apr 16, 2019
UMass Amherst’s new copper-clad Business Innovation Hub adds 70,000 sf to the university’s business school
Bjarke Ingels Group designed the facility.
