Santiago Canyon College Learning Resource Center
Orange, CA
The new library provides a centralized location for the essential information services at Santiago Canyon College. The campus is defined by concrete block buildings with minimal exterior glazing and mansard-tiled roofs. The college expressed a desire for the new library to continue in this tradition, while creating a new architectural image that implies the future of higher learning. The west CMU block elevation of the building contains support spaces and offices that buffer the interior from harsh solar exposure. Beyond the solid west wall, the user is drawn into an interior of luminous volumes and open space, while the second floor provides students with panoramic views of the campus, community and distant rolling hills. A limited building budget dictated a disciplined design solution. A simple building form, efficient structure and elegant details make the most of modest materials. The palette of building materials consists of burnished concrete block as an enriched material, plaster, metal and glass. The judicious use of material, detail and form allowed for selective areas to be more elaborate.