Architect: Clark Nexsen
Project Location: Wanchese North Carolina
Project Completion Date: Jan 2013
Short Description: Located on the banks of Roanoke Island, the Coastal Studies Institute Research Building is surrounded by vast expanses of wetlands and sweeping views of the Croatan Sound. As the main building on this new coastal campus, the facility’s mission is to be a model of sustainability in its response to the land and water. An existing canal governs its simple bent form aligning the building with the canal capturing views of the water and sky. The building is elevated on piloti touching the ground lightly and interacts with the landscape through its site walls, natural lawns, and covered outdoor spaces.
Architect’s Statement: Interaction with Land and Water The mission of the UNC Coastal Studies Institute is to be a model of sustainability through its architecture, building systems and through the research it conducts. It will provide a venue for inter-institutional collaboration and offer a new national resource for coastal education. The building was designed to minimize its impact on the land but to also anchor itself to the place – an existing landscape of fragile wetlands and waterways. The building’s form is a simple bent bar elevated above the land. The form was derived from the site by orienting the long face of the bar to the south and bending it to align with and capture a view down an existing canal. It hovers over a concrete plinth which raises the ground floor above the 100 year flood plain. The plinth employs a series of concrete walls to create site extensions into the landscape which also function as places for gathering and outdoor education. The bent bar form acts as a medium for viewing and experiencing the expansive landscape through its use of indoor-outdoor spaces. The articulation of the bar was achieved by subtracting layers to create outdoor covered spaces at each end and overhangs on the north and south glass curtain wall openings. Gathering spaces for collaboration reside at the ends of the bar where there are expansive views across the wetlands. Engaging the Coastal Environment The harsh and severe coastal environment provided inspiration for the building’s design as well as an opportunity to create a facility that encourages interaction among the students, faculty, and the public. Organized into three levels, all public spaces are concentrated on the lower floors while the private research spaces are on the upper floor. The ground floor is primarily open to the outside to create large, covered outdoor educational spaces and to allow panoramic views of the sound and wetlands. The levels are connected by a three story lobby space and a pair of steel and cable rail stairs which touch the ground. Preservation of Water and Natural Resources The Research Building is the first educational building on the campus and is seeking LEED Gold certification. It showcases a number of innovative features that help protect the land, water and natural resources. The land was carefully treated by balancing cut and fill and by using constructed wetlands and
Type of Construction: The building’s material palate is carefully selected for the harsh coastal environment with mostly local materials while providing durability and ease of maintenance. The primary exterior materials are the exposed concrete structure, a rainscreen fibercement panel system and cypress rainscreen siding. To respond to the harsh ground floor conditions of periodic flooding, the lower floors walls are all built with concrete masonry unit walls while the upper floor walls are constructed with lighter metal studs and storefront. Natural light is also employed as a material saturating interior corridors through the use of high ceilings, transparent corridors walls, and clerestory windows.