Stevenson Hall Renovation
The renovation of Stevenson Hall at Sonoma State University breathed new life into a concrete monolith. The 150,000-sf renovation features general education lecture halls, classrooms, and faculty offices for the Schools of Business and Economics, Education, and Social Sciences. As the largest academic building on campus and the first building to be addressed by the Campus Master Plan, the project involved comprehensive system replacements, exterior building improvements, a complete seismic upgrade, and site enhancements.
Our team created several coalitions across multiple stakeholder groups, including representatives from the three schools housed in the building, as well as campus-wide student and faculty groups. This was imperative, as the building serves as the main campus classroom building and is used by all departments. Furthermore, the classroom design was used to establish new standards that would be rolled out in further renovations throughout campus.
A theme voiced by all was the importance of programming this shared space to influence cross-disciplinary dialogue, informal collaboration, and learning opportunities. Our extensive outreach led to several pivotal design decisions, including the location of the dean suits, which were designed to be accessible directly from the central atrium space, or “learning commons,” to enhance wayfinding and openness.
Key design strategies, including subtle modifications to the facade, reorganized internal circulation, and the creation of a central atrium, resulted in spaces that flow into each other with cross connecting paths to create numerous pathways and sightlines through the entire building. The perforated layout encourages occupants of all the schools to connect with their neighbors and the bustling activity happening at ground level as students meet or rush to and from class. This arrangement has caused a dramatic cultural shift in how the schools work and intermingle, allowing students to have a real connection to faculty and an overall feeling of inclusion and openness.
The architect looked to revive and enhance the innate qualities of Stevenson Hall while providing a contemporary, fresh, and multi-functional building for the next 50 years. By saving the strong bones and rigorous logic of the building, the team hoped to retain a timeless quality that fits into the campus context and connects to the natural setting while embodying the distinct academic culture of Sonoma State. The subtle design moves to the façade, reorganizing the interior circulation, and the atrium space create a new, dynamic, and welcoming building for the University.
Design Challenge
Adlai Stevenson Hall was the first building constructed at the Sonoma State University campus in 1966. The architect looked to solve myriad of issues while providing the faculty and staff with state-of-the-art building systems and technology to support teaching pedagogy for the 21st century. All design decisions respect and enhance the original structure while redefining Stevenson Hall as a bright, inviting campus hub for activity and engagement.
Creating an Atrium at the Heart of the Building
A critical program requirement was the addition of three large lecture halls that would not fit within the existing column grid. In a defining design strategy, the team chose to construct a roof over an existing exterior courtyard to create a three-story, enclosed atrium space at the heart of the building. The ground floor of the atrium offers a column-free lecture hall with multiple seating options for individual study and informal learning. Beyond fulfilling program requirements, the new atrium provides large-scale, flexible space where each school is highly visible, enhancing wayfinding and elevating each school’s prominence within the building.
The atrium enhances existing features in several ways, including the strategic use of continuous strip skylights and shaped soffits in the atrium to maximize natural lighting while minimizing solar heat gain. Additionally, the atrium’s function as a large return air plenum, along with the implementation of passive air strategies, significantly reduced the need for ductwork and contributed to the project’s LEED Gold® certification and surpassing of Title 24 energy code requirements by 10%.
Opening the Façade While Respecting the Original Design
The brutalist concrete building was designed with strict adherence to a 24-foot structural grid and 6-foot-wide precast cladding panels. Every other panel has a relatively modest sized punched window, creating a single, monotonous rhythm across all levels and elevations of the building. The design team looked to respect the rigor of the structural logic of the facade while opening the building up to light and views. The team replaced each punched window precast panels with fully glazed window panels; this simple move dramatically transformed the façade at minimal cost to the project. The remaining opaque, sculptural precast panels were insulated on the interior and refurbished to maintain the wonderful depth and architectural interest of the original design.
Open Space and Pedestrian Circulation
The redesign of Stevenson Hall revolutionizes its circulation diagram, transforming dim, double- loaded corridors into open, bright hallways. The new layout moves all circulation to the building perimeter, surrounding faculty office “pods” with open-plan collaboration zones bathed in natural light. These zones, adjacent to both the exterior and the atrium, interconnect through various paths, enhancing maneuverability and sightlines throughout the building. The design ensures constant visual access to the atrium, aiding orientation. This perforated layout fosters a sense of community among occupants, linking them to the vibrant activities at ground level, and enhancing interaction among students and faculty. Physical Context
A Connection to Nature
A major project goal was to maximize glazing and increase views to the surrounding Sonoma hills landscape. The rhythm of openings and multiple sightlines available at intersecting collaborative zones, through the atrium, and the dappled light from skylights above allow the building interiors to have biophilia qualities proven to reduce stress, enhance creativity and improve well-being. The three-story tall curtainwall connecting the atrium to the east quad allows the green landscape to flow right into the building. The use of natural wood within the atrium ceiling and central stair element brings the idea of nature and warmth to the building interiors, while maintaining a clean, modern aesthetic that will be durable and timeless.
Campus Identity and Sense of Place
The project aimed to reestablish Stevenson Hall as a campus centerpiece, blending its historic identity with the natural landscape surrounding Sonoma State. Peeling away the original concrete walls and replacing them with an open and transparent exterior dissolves the building’s perceived heaviness and lends brightness to the interior spaces. During the day, light pours in, and with it, the natural beauty of the surrounding landscape. At night, light pours out. And for the first time in 58 years, the dynamic and vibrant interior life of the building becomes visible to the campus.
Fulfilling the Mission of the Institution
Sonoma State University’s strategic plan includes the core values of connectivity and community, with a strategic priority to support student success through all aspects of the student experience on campus. The Stevenson Hall transformation embodies these ideals, fostering a strong sense of belonging, gathering, and community through the design of multiple “Third Space” opportunities ranging from intimate study nooks to white boards in circulation spaces, to large comfortable lounge seating and tables. The building provides ample opportunities for informal learning and dialogue outside of the classroom or office. It is an interdisciplinary building, bringing together departments to encourage meaningful connections.