Located at the heart of one of the most innovative markets in the country, the UC Santa Cruz Silicon Valley Campus is a multidisciplinary teaching and research hub shared by both design students and industry professionals. The 90,000-square-foot facility offers a cutting-edge campus ambiance that blends the university with the tech community’s high-energy, fast-paced culture. In 2019, the University decided to renovate the existing facility with a 22,000sf Tenant Improvement project, which added departments to expand the academics offered at the UCSC Silicon Valley Campus.
LPA’s integrated team worked closely with the client and end-users to integrate the new academic programs within the existing campus building. One of the design challenges was to blend the new program within the existing building, showing design continuity between the original building design, and representing UCSC on this remote campus, and promoting the new unique academic programs. The collaborative process with the client and end-users placed an emphasis on flexibility, branding and technology, and recognizing that the campus offers post-secondary degrees in technology and digital gaming. The additional program elements consist primarily of bullpen spaces and team rooms, centered around collaboration, flexibility, and technology.
