CSC MULTIPURPOSE ADDITION

The nationally renowned Children's Service Center traces its institutional roots back to its founding in 1862 for the children of Civil War soldiers. The "Home for Friendless Children" provided shelter, food, and instruction to the destitute children of the area. The 16,000 square foot facility provides the Center's Partial School Program with never before available spaces for indoor activities and recreational programs, better-designed classroom space, new security system, and a safer structure and environment for child occupancy. Incorporated into the facility are data, communication, and audio/video networks, which provide opportunity for innovative instruction activities as well as other events such as seminars, conferences, and distance education broadcasts for professionals. The program included integrating the new structure with the existing campus buildings and the historic neighborhood in which it is located. Besides classrooms, the $1,800,000 building includes a library, networked computer laboratory, and an indoor, two and a half story recreational space. The recreational space is adjacent to an arts and crafts space and a cafeteria, and divided by moveable walls creating a flexible, multipurpose space that can accommodate large group activities. Since the students engage in many on floor activities, in-slab radiant heat provides comfort in the large recreation space and the adjoining rooms. Special attention was paid to indoor air quality including the finish materials which were chosen for their "green" characteristics. Low VOC paint and flooring were chosen for the bulk of the facility to minimize impact on allergy sensitive students and staff as well as those with respiratory conditions. Additionally, most of the building products are from sustainable, recyclable materials. The roughly used facility required durable glazed concrete block. The continuation of the residential character of the facility provides a sense of reassurance to students who already have a frictional history with institutions. Spatially, the facility maintains a certain playfulness that allows students to "discover" spaces and framed views both inside and out. The double-height multipurpose space creates a sense of drama while at the same time fulfills a practical need for indoor physical recreation space. An enclosed courtyard at the main entrance provides a protected play area as well as opportunity for vistas from inside the building. The bridge, a visual and connecting feature, architecturally links the 1938 structure to the 2001 multipurpose addition. Located above the courtyard entrance it provides further definition of the outdoor space while at the same time solving circulation and egress requirements inside. The owner & neighborhood regard the project a success because of the functional design, sensitivity to the occupants, historical context, and aesthetic sensibility while remaining within the budget.

Photos By: Chris Barone