Collection by Chris Hong
Green
University of California, Merced Long Range Development Plan in Merced, California
Ambitiously setting a goal for daylight access in 75 percent of the interior rooms (quite a feat for a large university building) is just the beginning for UC Merced’s long-range plan. By 2020, UC Merced plans to be the first zero-net-energy, zero-net-waste and zero-net-emissions campus in the USA. It will also help to preserve the surrounding 30,000 acres of vernal pool grasslands, the largest concentration of vernal pool grasslands in the world.
The large patio leads to a newly landscaped back garden. An expansive glass wall promotes seamless indoor-outdoor living. Inexpensive brick pavers were chosen for the rear patio; they offer textural contrast with the steel of the door, brick of the rear facade, and pale gray wood of the interior floors.