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Educational Spaces reflect the community around them, often informing these communities. As our lives continue to embrace technology, so do our campuses. This embrace serves to increase accessibility to knowledge and experimentation in shrinking the world, while simultaneously expanding our horizons. We focus on flexible spaces that are able to evolve as knowledge, information, and technology continue to evolve.

Chico State University Services Building

The expansion of residential suburbs in the 1960's and 1970's left our central city with stately but underutilized school facilities. Fremont School is one of 10 examples in the area that was designed by Dean &amp; Dean. It is a beautiful brick and terracotta building in the Spanish Revival style on a quiet Midtown street. It had a second life as an adult education center, which was shuttered in 2012.

After much discussion and negotiation, Fremont School now is the new creative home for Sacramento’s performing arts community, complete with outdoor performance space. The high ceilings and large classrooms perfectly suit rehearsal and teaching needs for <a href="https://www.sacballet.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sacramento Ballet</a>, <a href="https://www.mckeeverdance.com/#index" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">McKeever School of Irish Dance</a>, <a href="https://sacprepmusic.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sacramento Preparatory Music Academy</a>, and several others.

There are many technical challenges to adapting an early 20th century non-reinforced masonry building to the needs of 21st century performing arts. For one, the west wing of the school needed a truly creative structural solution to make the former classrooms and hallways open up for ballet studios. With <a href="https://buehlerengineering.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Buehler Engineering</a>, an innovative solution of 36 post-tension cables made this need a reality. The red cables, typically buried within new concrete, are intentionally left visible and are viewable from the first floor School of the Sacramento Ballet studios. The structural system was more complex than other concepts but once optimized, it was the lightest and least costly solution for the budget.

On March 17, 2015, the Sacramento City Council approved spending to renovate the building for the performing arts community in Sacramento. On May 11, 2015, <a href="https://www.rsconstruction.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudolph &amp; Sletten</a> started construction on the project. On March 9, 2016 the project - which was renamed <a href="https://www.claramidtown.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CLARA</a> - officially opened.

CLARA received the 2017 Rehabilitation Design Award from the California Preservation Foundation; and Honor Award from the AIA Central Valley as well as the Divine Detail Award for the innovative structural solution. In 2017, the project also received an Award of Excellence in Historic Preservation from SEAOCC.

Photos by Chip Allen; historic photos courtesy of Center for Sacramento History.

CLARA, E. Claire Raley Studios for the Performing Arts

The Gas Safety Academy campus is a center of excellence for PG&amp;E. It incorporates industry best practices and technology-led instruction, elevating the standards of gas pipeline safety to the highest levels in the United States. Dreyfuss + Blackford Architecture completed the programming, master planning, and design of the entire campus, located on a 40-acre site in Winters, California.

The campus consists of several indoor and outdoor learning areas. The main Learning Center houses 10 training classrooms and three lab classrooms, an open dining area with locally catered food service, open office, and lobby with a display of a damaged natural gas pipe. Adjacent to the Learning Center is the Transmission &amp; Distribution building with two classrooms and three labs specific to plastic fusion pipe fitting, utility workers, and industrial safety training at heights. An outdoor Utility Village includes model residences in a neighborhood configuration to simulate real in-field situations. Completing the campus is a Weld Lab facility that teaches best techniques in pipe welding. The building includes a large lab space housing 16 student weld booths and six stations for recertification of journeyman in-field welders.

The Gas Safety Academy is designed to achieve a LEED certification of Silver.

PG&E Gas Safety Academy

Museum of Science and Curiosity

Operating Engineers Local 3 (OE3) is the largest construction trades union in the country, comprised of men and women who operate heavy equipment on job sites and roadways. The development of a comprehensive master plan lead to the design of a new 15-acre educational campus on a 1,500 acre site. Working in close collaboration with an environmental consultant, landscape architect, and civil engineer we ensured the new campus would be a good neighbor to the various wetlands, native species and plants surrounding the property. OE3 will utilize just 5% of the total site area for training at any one time and the campus core accounts for only 1% of the total land area.

The campus core is composed of seven structures arranged and inspired by the barns and outbuildings of rural farms. The main campus is surrounded by a loop road separating external heavy equipment and maintenance functions from internal pedestrian circulation of the campus core. The heart of the campus is comprised of administration, classrooms and training buildings arranged to create a centralized hyper-social outdoor space where large groups can gather, and decentralized quiet spaces where students and staff can unplug between classes. The arrangement also creates areas for natural habitat, stormwater retention with bio swales and ponds. Other areas dedicated to heavy equipment use and training include a maintenance shop, storage and two-acre covered dig area for training during inclement weather. Covered and open training areas are separated by a series of landscape features and vegetated mounds to help deflect equipment sounds from the instruction core of the campus

The buildings are simple structures appropriate in scale, proportion and form to the typology of the area. Similar to old barn structures which utilized a heavy timber kit-of-parts to construct frames, these buildings utilize pre-engineered frames offering an economy, simplicity and column free interior space for greater training flexibility.

OE3 Training Center

The Upper Quarry Amphitheater at UC Santa Cruz was designed in the mid-1960s by landscape architect Robert Royston inside of a natural stone quarry on campus. Graduations, protests, lectures and concerts were held in this 2,000 seat amphitheater until it deteriorated to the point it could no longer be safely used. Both a renovation and a rehabilitation, the project upgraded the venue to include accessible seating and better access for all patrons. The project scope also included rock-slope stabilization, safety fencing, improved emergency vehicle access, on-site stormwater treatment, regular and emergency power, and site lighting. Supporting the overwhelming request of the students, Wi-Fi was installed to serve over 2,000 simultaneous connections for streaming of live events.

The site now includes one additional row of seating, maintaining the original asymmetrical seat layout as closely as possible. Materials used represent the original design with revisions to improve long-term durability and maintenance. Stairs were also reconstructed in their original locations. The Upper Quarry Amphitheater is a historical resource under CEQA, and as such all modifications were sympathetic to the original design to not diminish the amphitheater’s historic integrity.

The project was featured in Landscape Architecture Magazine's, January 2020 issue. It received a Special Mention from the jury of the 2020 Architizer A+Awards in the Architecture +Landscape category and was also chosen as a finalist in the Architecture +Preservation category.

Historic images are courtesy of University of California, Santa Cruz, Special Collections; Color photography by Kyle Jeffers.

UC Santa Cruz Upper Quarry Amphitheater Restoration

Since first constructed in 1975, the University Union has been considered the “living room” of the campus, but technological changes, code requirements and the demand for more space created a much-needed addition and renovation for the building. This 72,000 SF, three-story expansion provides an amenity-rich addition at the heart of the Sacramento State campus with more meeting rooms, student spaces and offices for University functions. Delivered using the University’s innovative Collaborative Design-Build method, this LEED Gold-designed project engaged stakeholders in workshops throughout the design process, ensuring University staff and student expectations were captured.

The design solution gives the building an essential identity in a new main entry with an expansive double height pavilion, outdoor gathering space, and retail to activate the pedestrian zone. A large Starbucks and relocated Peak Adventures retail store with bicycle repair shop, greet the public once inside. A modern Games Room has new pool tables, ping pong, and various video game consoles for students to use between classes. Lounge spaces, divisible conference suites and open offices for Union-specific and ASI-related departments are also included to meet demand.

By creating more permeable and light-filled spaces on the north side and discernible main entry pavilion, the University Union expansion is not only designed to fit demand and meet modern code requirements, it allows the Union to be a beacon for student life on the campus again.

Sacramento State University Union Expansion

The Welcome Center at Sacramento State - for new and prospective students - also houses University Transportation and Parking Services (UTAPS) administrative offices and is adjacent to Parking Structure 5 at the front entrance to the campus. In close proximity to the University Arboretum, the landscape, which includes existing mature trees, folds around the building and envelopes it to help it blend in with its surroundings.

The building includes a large assembly space with media briefing area, offices, public payment counter, conference rooms and other support spaces. The utilization of sloped roofs allows for a generous overhang area for outdoor gatherings and provides an efficient means of rainwater drainage through the use of rain chains. Stained and sealed wood panels and slats on the exterior are integrated into the façade and overhang – a nod to the campus’ trellis motif.

Also included with the project is a pedestrian plaza with sculpture art connecting the Welcome Center and Parking Structure 5 with the rest of campus, creating a strong sense of place. The activated plaza space extends out toward the campus for those using the parking structure, while the Welcome Center leans inward inviting new students to find out more about the University.

The Welcome Center is designed to achieve LEED Gold certification.

Sacramento State Welcome Center + Plaza

At Sacramento City College, the new Mohr Hall academic lab building sits prominently at the southern tip of the campus, anchoring the community college at a major intersection across from the 160-acre William Land Park. The design vocabulary embraces the historic institution’s brick, concrete, and terracotta roof tile aesthetic with a clean, modern approach to composition and detailing.

The new building incorporates passive solar features such as deep overhangs and vertical fins to help shield from low sun angles. A series of outdoor gathering spaces and landscape features better connect with the existing circulation of campus. The centrally located building entrance incorporates a feature wall and seating areas. Just outside the geology lab is an outdoor learning space that incorporates a rock garden from the colleges’ vast specimen collection.

Student gathering spaces are located on both floors, designed to allow students to casually interact with each other and faculty. Lab spaces are located on the east side allowing for access to the courtyard and outdoor spaces, including those utilized by allied health students for training.

Sacramento City College is the oldest higher learning institution in the Los Rios Community College District and the Sacramento region. Built in the 1960s, the former Mohr Hall was a single story building on a prominent corner that differed from the rest of the campus architecture and occupied the space of two potential buildings. The new Mohr Hall occupies the western portion of the existing site, leaving space for a future two-story building to the east.

Sacramento City College Mohr Hall

Parking at Sacramento State has been notoriously difficult. The university is building their fifth parking structure and revamping their alternative transportation options. The campus asked Dreyfuss + Blackford to create a Master Plan for all their transportation related signage and wayfinding so it looked cohesive and would serve them for the next 20 years. Special emphasis was needing in accommodating the four existing parking structures and 14 surface lots. The look and feel also needed to be translated to other modes of getting to campus: shuttle, EV, bicycle routes, autonomous vehicles, bus and light rail. The final master plan document gives the campus a road map for signage consistency and implementation. As modes of transportation change in the coming years, Sac State will be ready.

Specific features of the master plan include standardizing permit types based on use. Administrators, Employees, Students and Residents all have dedicated areas to park in and these zones tended to change over time. We devised a plan to give permit-holders an easier way to identify who can park where and when. Specifically branded regulatory and directional signage gives a consistent look allowing everyone to understand they are travelling through planned spaces inside a larger campus, which reduces anxiety, fosters a sense of security, and provides clear direction quickly. Inside the structures, zones of color note special use areas on each floor. Bicycle parking, paths, and corresponding directional signage is also being folded into the new brand (all based on existing Sac State branding guidelines), as is other alternative modes of transportation. Consideration of materials and capabilities of the Facilities Management Department for on-campus sign fabrication was carefully reviewed to ensure requirements could be met in-house, as needed.

The first campus area to implement the new signage standard is <a href="https://dbarch.wpengine.com/project/sacramento-state-parking-structure-v/">Parking Structure 5</a>.

Sacramento State University Transportation and Parking Signage & Wayfinding Master Plan

Dreyfuss + Blackford Architecture was invited to participate in a competition to design a new exterior treatment on the east and south sides of an existing parking garage on 3rd Street at UCSF’s Mission Bay campus in San Francisco. As UCSF is a top-rated research University, our façade concept fosters the feeling of discovery through ever-changing views that obscure and show colored horizontal fins threading in-between the verticals. Each vertical fin represents an individual EKG reading of a heartbeat rhythm, representing the many doctors and researchers who have participated in the University’s extensive history of scientific advancement.

Forty-nine split-v prefinished aluminum vertical fins project up-to three feet from the existing structure. The varying texture of the CNC-cut fins obscure the colored horizontal louvers from the north and south approaches. As the viewer passes, the louvers begin to reveal an undulating pattern that appears to grow like a vine from a seed. Inspired from medical and scientific discovery, the louvers represent the impact of a single discovery - the smallest of fins start singularly at the upper left corner and grow with increased number and size across the facade.

UCSF, Mission Bay 23B 3rd Street Garage Façade Competition

Sacramento State, The Hub Research Park Master Plan

The Hornet Bookstore houses traditional textbook sales, expanded retail functions and administrative offices. The Hornet bookstore is sited adjacent to the University Union on a major pedestrian thoroughfare. A grove of mature redwood trees was preserved on the south side, providing great filtered light through multi-story glazing.  A bold, retail front sets the tone for retail appeal at the plaza level, announcing that the building is about more than simply textbooks. The University Enterprises, Inc. offices are located on the third floor and have commanding views of the American River.

This facility brings energy and appeal to the core of the campus, complimenting the University Union across the plaza.

Sacramento State Hornet Bookstore & Offices of University Enterprises, Inc.

The Academic Information Resource Center (AIRC) at Sacramento State is a state-of-the-art flexible office and academic building integrated with a computer facility that provides both the faculty and student body with upgraded systems and access to all campus telecommunications.

The building provides studio classrooms, open study rooms, and administrative offices; offers go-to laboratories with full computer resources for student and faculty needs – study, testing, grades, online research, and presentations; and houses all campus servers, networks and hubs for every facet of communications, as well as the technical staff that maintains these systems.

The design and detailing of this structure reflects its high-tech function while providing pleasant and efficient spaces for all technical needs. AIRC is truly the heart and hub of the University campus.

Sacramento State Academic Information Resource Center

Work is underway to develop a consolidated College of Engineering and Computer Science on the California State University, Sacramento campus. The preliminary program called for a new expansion building to house overflow programs across the quad from the existing engineering building. Contin­ued dialogue with the Engineering faculty found that collegial interaction would be lost by housing staff in separate buildings. An alternate approach consolidating all engineering disciplines in a single facility was greeted with enthusiasm by both staff and campus administration.

This facility will feature dedicated lab spaces, a Class 1000 clean room, flexible computing labs, student project and shop spaces, and faculty and administration support offices. The building is designed with many innovative and sustainable design strategies, to make this the most forward-thinking structure on the campus.

Sacramento State College of Engineering + Computer Science

The conversion of the former Hornet Bookstore into classroom and administrative office facilities was the goal of this project. The 1965 precast concrete building was significantly expanded in the 1980s with a lightweight, steel-frame addition. All existing systems and materials were carefully examined to determine the most optimum renovation approach. Seismic, energy and sustainable design were all key aspects. The first floor was renovated for use as a large lecture hall and a series of collaborative classrooms. The second floor was converted to classrooms for the College of Continuing Education. The third floor provides administrative office for the campus Human Resources division. Working with a complex existing building and a strictly limited budget, we succeeded in creating a highly functional new classroom facility that is an economical asset for the campus.

Sacramento State Del Norte Hall Renovation

The College of Continuing Education, which embraces distance learning, is one of the fastest-growing disciplines on the Sacramento State campus. This facility provides classrooms with raised computer floors and full A/V functionality as well as administrative offices. An integrated art program centered in the two-story lobby creates a visual focus in the building. Daylight is carefully controlled but supplied generously, reducing energy demands. This gateway center at the south campus entry makes a bold statement about the College of Continuing Education and its importance to the campus.

Sacramento State Napa Hall College of Continuing Education

Over the years we have been renovating the University Union at Sacramento State to keep pace with student demand and emerging trends in food service. The Hornet’s Nest was the largest phased improvement to the dining areas in the complex, with five commercial serveries and large open seating areas.

Renovation of finishes, furniture and lighting create a contemporary dining and gathering space for the students. One goal was to continue to expose the existing waffle slab ceiling between horizontal clouds of floating ceiling panels, set at an angle to provide acoustic value and visual dynamics. A dining corner is accented with walls of bamboo that wrap partially into the lower ceiling. This provides a more intimate space with built-in banquette seating and translucent porcelain pendant lights designed and fabricated by local artist Brian Schmitt. Bamboo and warm wood tones balance the white of the ceiling and jeweled-toned paint and furniture colors tie it together to bring warmth and energy into the space.

The ability to work within occupied spaces on a strictly limited schedule and budget is a hallmark of our approach to renovation projects.

Sacramento State University Union Hornet's Nest Renovation

Located by the main entrance to the Sacramento State campus, Parking Structure 5 (PS5) is designed to blend and complement the dense trees of the nearby arboretum. The 1,750 stall, six-level parking structure serves a campus in dire need of parking, and provides a structure exceeding the quality and efficiency of any of the previous parking facilities.

The structure’s skin creates a dialog with the surrounding trees. The facade is dressed with vertical fins painted in tints of green. The thousands of individual square fins are a digital representation of nature, and form patterns like leaves of a tree canopy overhead. Covering the three upper levels of the structure, precast concrete is textured with a pattern that nods to the rough bark of the birch trees.

Serving a sizable percentage of the campus’ parking need, automobile circulation is designed to move traffic into the structure as efficiently as possible with queuing space off-street to handle periods of high volume. The technology, design, innovations, placemaking and conservation programs implemented at PS5 contributed to a Parksmart Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, making it the highest-performing, most-sustainable parking structure on campus and the first garage in the 23-campus CSU system to meet the certification standard. It has also earned a Gold certification from the United States Resiliency Council, which rates structures for safety, damage and recovery time in a seismic event.

Sacramento State Parking Structure 5

We completed design and construction administration services to repurpose former dental hygiene instruction spaces in the Chan Family Health Sciences Learning Center and Clinics building on the University of the Pacific campus. The main goal of the project was expansion of instructional spaces and providing comfortable student study and lounge areas for better learning, patient care and recruitment of highly-qualified students. The building now houses facilities for the Pharmacy School with state-of-the-art lecture classrooms, clinics, faculty offices, and bright, open study spaces for students. In addition, the project expands tele-health teaching, research and services for student health practitioners to reach more Veterans Affairs patients.

UOP, Chan Family Health Sciences Learning Center + Clinics Renovation

The successful completion of Sacramento State’s 4-story, 1000-car Parking Structure 2 was immediately followed by the commission for a third garage. Nearly four times as large as 2, Parking Structure 3 is six stories and has 3,500 stalls.

A key design task was to minimize the bulk of the building through landscaping and ground-level, pedestrian treatment. Careful detailing, excellent traffic flow, innovative and human-scale features make this a welcome addition to the campus.

Sacramento State Parking Structure 3

Sacramento State is primarily a commuter university. With most students living off campus, structured parking meets demands by going vertical, freeing surface lots for academic buildings. Located near the University Union, Parking Structure 2 provides 1,000 spaces on four levels, in the heart of campus. It is a clean structure with trellis and landscape elements respecting the pedestrian environment of the adjacent Serna Plaza. Landscape growth has enhanced its appearance, screening and softening the structure.

The elevator towers are transparent and well-lit, providing welcome wayfinding beacons and measures of security through their high visibility design.

The Modernist design approach to this project resulted in simple, clean lines and a rational layout. Both vehicle and pedestrian circulation are very clear and intuitive. Simplicity makes this a very economical structure; in both initial construction and continuing operating costs.

Sacramento State Parking Structure 2

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C2021.00 Chico State University Services 0500

The University Services Building at California State University, Chico is the new home for the Facilities Management &amp; Services (FMS). Located on the periphery of the campus, the building location optimizes functionality and flow within the existing facilities service yard. An open floor plan accommodates conference rooms, private offices, open workstations, work-room spaces, and other building support spaces.

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B3017 CLARA Midtown, E. Claire Raley Studios for the Performing

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The expansion of residential suburbs in the 1960&#8217;s and 1970&#8217;s left our central city with stately but underutilized school facilities. Fremont School is one of 10 examples in the area that was designed by Dean &amp; Dean. It is a beautiful brick and terracotta building in the Spanish Revival style on a quiet Midtown street. It had a second life as an adult education center, which was shuttered in 2012.
After much discussion and negotiation, Fremont School now is the new creative home for Sacramento’s performing arts community, complete with outdoor performance space. The high ceilings and large classrooms perfectly suit rehearsal and teaching needs for <a href="https://www.sacballet.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sacramento Ballet</a>, <a href="https://www.mckeeverdance.com/#index" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">McKeever School of Irish Dance</a>, <a href="https://sacprepmusic.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sacramento Preparatory Music Academy</a>, and several others.
There are many technical challenges to adapting an early 20th century non-reinforced masonry building to the needs of 21st century performing arts. For one, the west wing of the school needed a truly creative structural solution to make the former classrooms and hallways open up for ballet studios. With <a href="https://buehlerengineering.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Buehler Engineering</a>, an innovative solution of 36 post-tension cables made this need a reality. The red cables, typically buried within new concrete, are intentionally left visible and are viewable from the first floor School of the Sacramento Ballet studios. The structural system was more complex than other concepts but once optimized, it was the lightest and least costly solution for the budget.
On March 17, 2015, the Sacramento City Council approved spending to renovate the building for the performing arts community in Sacramento. On May 11, 2015, <a href="https://www.rsconstruction.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudolph &amp; Sletten</a> started construction on the project. On March 9, 2016 the project &#8211; which was renamed <a href="https://www.claramidtown.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CLARA</a> &#8211; officially opened.
CLARA received the 2017 Rehabilitation Design Award from the California Preservation Foundation; and Honor Award from the AIA Central Valley as well as the Divine Detail Award for the innovative structural solution. In 2017, the project also received an Award of Excellence in Historic Preservation from SEAOCC.
Photos by Chip Allen; historic photos courtesy of Center for Sacramento History.

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A9007 Museum of Science and Curiosity, 2002-2021

The SMUD Museum of Science and Curiosity (MOSAC) is a transformation project at the confluence of history, science, and community impact. Formerly the Powerhouse Science Center, MOSAC reimagines a long-dormant riverfront power station as a vibrant hub for science education, exploration, and civic engagement. Set against the banks of the Sacramento River, the museum is a cornerstone in the city’s riverfront revitalization and a destination for learning that connects past innovation with future discovery.

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B8003 OE3 Training Center, 2018

Operating Engineers Local 3 (OE3) is the largest construction trades union in the country, comprised of men and women who operate heavy equipment on job sites and roadways. The development of a comprehensive master plan lead to the design of a new 15-acre educational campus on a 1,500 acre site. Working in close collaboration with an environmental consultant, landscape architect, and civil engineer we ensured the new campus would be a good neighbor to the various wetlands, native species and plants surrounding the property. OE3 will utilize just 5% of the total site area for training at any one time and the campus core accounts for only 1% of the total land area.
The campus core is composed of seven structures arranged and inspired by the barns and outbuildings of rural farms. The main campus is surrounded by a loop road separating external heavy equipment and maintenance functions from internal pedestrian circulation of the campus core. The heart of the campus is comprised of administration, classrooms and training buildings arranged to create a centralized hyper-social outdoor space where large groups can gather, and decentralized quiet spaces where students and staff can unplug between classes. The arrangement also creates areas for natural habitat, stormwater retention with bio swales and ponds. Other areas dedicated to heavy equipment use and training include a maintenance shop, storage and two-acre covered dig area for training during inclement weather. Covered and open training areas are separated by a series of landscape features and vegetated mounds to help deflect equipment sounds from the instruction core of the campus
The buildings are simple structures appropriate in scale, proportion and form to the typology of the area. Similar to old barn structures which utilized a heavy timber kit-of-parts to construct frames, these buildings utilize pre-engineered frames offering an economy, simplicity and column free interior space for greater training flexibility.

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UC Santa Cruz Quarry Amphiteater

The Upper Quarry Amphitheater at UC Santa Cruz was designed in the mid-1960s by landscape architect Robert Royston inside of a natural stone quarry on campus. Graduations, protests, lectures and concerts were held in this 2,000 seat amphitheater until it deteriorated to the point it could no longer be safely used. Both a renovation and a rehabilitation, the project upgraded the venue to include accessible seating and better access for all patrons. The project scope also included rock-slope stabilization, safety fencing, improved emergency vehicle access, on-site stormwater treatment, regular and emergency power, and site lighting. Supporting the overwhelming request of the students, Wi-Fi was installed to serve over 2,000 simultaneous connections for streaming of live events.
The site now includes one additional row of seating, maintaining the original asymmetrical seat layout as closely as possible. Materials used represent the original design with revisions to improve long-term durability and maintenance. Stairs were also reconstructed in their original locations. The Upper Quarry Amphitheater is a historical resource under CEQA, and as such all modifications were sympathetic to the original design to not diminish the amphitheater’s historic integrity.
The project was featured in Landscape Architecture Magazine&#8217;s, January 2020 issue. It received a Special Mention from the jury of the 2020 Architizer A+Awards in the Architecture +Landscape category and was also chosen as a finalist in the Architecture +Preservation category.
Historic images are courtesy of University of California, Santa Cruz, Special Collections; Color photography by Kyle Jeffers.

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Sacramento State University Union Building

Since first constructed in 1975, the University Union has been considered the “living room” of the campus, but technological changes, code requirements and the demand for more space created a much-needed addition and renovation for the building. This 72,000 SF, three-story expansion provides an amenity-rich addition at the heart of the Sacramento State campus with more meeting rooms, student spaces and offices for University functions. Delivered using the University’s innovative Collaborative Design-Build method, this LEED Gold-designed project engaged stakeholders in workshops throughout the design process, ensuring University staff and student expectations were captured.
The design solution gives the building an essential identity in a new main entry with an expansive double height pavilion, outdoor gathering space, and retail to activate the pedestrian zone. A large Starbucks and relocated Peak Adventures retail store with bicycle repair shop, greet the public once inside. A modern Games Room has new pool tables, ping pong, and various video game consoles for students to use between classes. Lounge spaces, divisible conference suites and open offices for Union-specific and ASI-related departments are also included to meet demand.
By creating more permeable and light-filled spaces on the north side and discernible main entry pavilion, the University Union expansion is not only designed to fit demand and meet modern code requirements, it allows the Union to be a beacon for student life on the campus again.

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B6015 Sacramento State Welcome Center, 2016

The Welcome Center at Sacramento State &#8211; for new and prospective students &#8211; also houses University Transportation and Parking Services (UTAPS) administrative offices and is adjacent to Parking Structure 5 at the front entrance to the campus. In close proximity to the University Arboretum, the landscape, which includes existing mature trees, folds around the building and envelopes it to help it blend in with its surroundings.
The building includes a large assembly space with media briefing area, offices, public payment counter, conference rooms and other support spaces. The utilization of sloped roofs allows for a generous overhang area for outdoor gatherings and provides an efficient means of rainwater drainage through the use of rain chains. Stained and sealed wood panels and slats on the exterior are integrated into the façade and overhang – a nod to the campus’ trellis motif.
Also included with the project is a pedestrian plaza with sculpture art connecting the Welcome Center and Parking Structure 5 with the rest of campus, creating a strong sense of place. The activated plaza space extends out toward the campus for those using the parking structure, while the Welcome Center leans inward inviting new students to find out more about the University.
The Welcome Center is designed to achieve LEED Gold certification.

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B5017 LRCCD SCC Mohr Hall, 2015

At Sacramento City College, the new Mohr Hall academic lab building sits prominently at the southern tip of the campus, anchoring the community college at a major intersection across from the 160-acre William Land Park. The design vocabulary embraces the historic institution’s brick, concrete, and terracotta roof tile aesthetic with a clean, modern approach to composition and detailing.
The new building incorporates passive solar features such as deep overhangs and vertical fins to help shield from low sun angles. A series of outdoor gathering spaces and landscape features better connect with the existing circulation of campus. The centrally located building entrance incorporates a feature wall and seating areas. Just outside the geology lab is an outdoor learning space that incorporates a rock garden from the colleges’ vast specimen collection.
Student gathering spaces are located on both floors, designed to allow students to casually interact with each other and faculty. Lab spaces are located on the east side allowing for access to the courtyard and outdoor spaces, including those utilized by allied health students for training.
Sacramento City College is the oldest higher learning institution in the Los Rios Community College District and the Sacramento region. Built in the 1960s, the former Mohr Hall was a single story building on a prominent corner that differed from the rest of the campus architecture and occupied the space of two potential buildings. The new Mohr Hall occupies the western portion of the existing site, leaving space for a future two-story building to the east.

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B6015 Sacramento State Parking Structure 5, 2016

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Parking at Sacramento State has been notoriously difficult. The university is building their fifth parking structure and revamping their alternative transportation options. The campus asked Dreyfuss + Blackford to create a Master Plan for all their transportation related signage and wayfinding so it looked cohesive and would serve them for the next 20 years. Special emphasis was needing in accommodating the four existing parking structures and 14 surface lots. The look and feel also needed to be translated to other modes of getting to campus: shuttle, EV, bicycle routes, autonomous vehicles, bus and light rail. The final master plan document gives the campus a road map for signage consistency and implementation. As modes of transportation change in the coming years, Sac State will be ready.
Specific features of the master plan include standardizing permit types based on use. Administrators, Employees, Students and Residents all have dedicated areas to park in and these zones tended to change over time. We devised a plan to give permit-holders an easier way to identify who can park where and when. Specifically branded regulatory and directional signage gives a consistent look allowing everyone to understand they are travelling through planned spaces inside a larger campus, which reduces anxiety, fosters a sense of security, and provides clear direction quickly. Inside the structures, zones of color note special use areas on each floor. Bicycle parking, paths, and corresponding directional signage is also being folded into the new brand (all based on existing Sac State branding guidelines), as is other alternative modes of transportation. Consideration of materials and capabilities of the Facilities Management Department for on-campus sign fabrication was carefully reviewed to ensure requirements could be met in-house, as needed.
The first campus area to implement the new signage standard is Parking Structure 5.

Dreyfuss + Blackford Architecture was invited to participate in a competition to design a new exterior treatment on the east and south sides of an existing parking garage on 3rd Street at UCSF’s Mission Bay campus in San Francisco. As UCSF is a top-rated research University, our façade concept fosters the feeling of discovery through ever-changing views that obscure and show colored horizontal fins threading in-between the verticals. Each vertical fin represents an individual EKG reading of a heartbeat rhythm, representing the many doctors and researchers who have participated in the University’s extensive history of scientific advancement.
Forty-nine split-v prefinished aluminum vertical fins project up-to three feet from the existing structure. The varying texture of the CNC-cut fins obscure the colored horizontal louvers from the north and south approaches. As the viewer passes, the louvers begin to reveal an undulating pattern that appears to grow like a vine from a seed. Inspired from medical and scientific discovery, the louvers represent the impact of a single discovery &#8211; the smallest of fins start singularly at the upper left corner and grow with increased number and size across the facade.

Dreyfuss + Blackford Architecture, in collaboration with MIG, Inc., developed a Master Plan for a 25-acre site to the south of the Sacramento State campus on Ramona Avenue. The site is within the Sacramento Center for Innovation which is bounded by Folsom Boulevard to the north, Power Inn Road to the east, and the Union Pacific rail lines to the west.
The project is being developed in two phases with academic, research, and office space that support the academic programming of the University. Phase I includes construction and operation of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD)-affiliated nonprofit California Mobility Center (CMC), a testing and manufacturing facility for autonomous electric vehicles, and a building with forensic laboratories for the California Department of Justice. Phase II would expand the CMC and replace Phase I surface parking with two mixed-use buildings, providing academic, administrative, and research space with ground-level retail and parking.

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A7837 CSUS Del Norte Hall (Bookstore Backfill), 2009

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B2028 California State University, Sacramento Hornet's Nest, 2013

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Located by the main entrance to the Sacramento State campus, Parking Structure 5 (PS5) is designed to blend and complement the dense trees of the nearby arboretum. The 1,750 stall, six-level parking structure serves a campus in dire need of parking, and provides a structure exceeding the quality and efficiency of any of the previous parking facilities.
The structure’s skin creates a dialog with the surrounding trees. The facade is dressed with vertical fins painted in tints of green. The thousands of individual square fins are a digital representation of nature, and form patterns like leaves of a tree canopy overhead. Covering the three upper levels of the structure, precast concrete is textured with a pattern that nods to the rough bark of the birch trees.
Serving a sizable percentage of the campus’ parking need, automobile circulation is designed to move traffic into the structure as efficiently as possible with queuing space off-street to handle periods of high volume. The technology, design, innovations, placemaking and conservation programs implemented at PS5 contributed to a Parksmart Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, making it the highest-performing, most-sustainable parking structure on campus and the first garage in the 23-campus CSU system to meet the certification standard. It has also earned a Gold certification from the United States Resiliency Council, which rates structures for safety, damage and recovery time in a seismic event.

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We completed design and construction administration services to repurpose former dental hygiene instruction spaces in the Chan Family Health Sciences Learning Center and Clinics building on the University of the Pacific campus. The main goal of the project was expansion of instructional spaces and providing comfortable student study and lounge areas for better learning, patient care and recruitment of highly-qualified students. The building now houses facilities for the Pharmacy School with state-of-the-art lecture classrooms, clinics, faculty offices, and bright, open study spaces for students. In addition, the project expands tele-health teaching, research and services for student health practitioners to reach more Veterans Affairs patients.