By Lindsey Coulter��

In the heart of downtown Portland, a once-stark Brutalist building is now alive with light, greenery, and the energy of��nearly 2,000��students. The Vernier Science Center, formerly Science Building One, has been completely reimagined to foster collaboration, curiosity, and cultural inclusivity. Glass-wrapped entryways, climbing vines, and oversized planters frame a human-scaled entrance, signaling that science education at Portland State University (PSU) is no longer��just about labs��and lectures —��it’s��about people,��community��and the stories they bring.��

The original 1967 structure, designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, was constructed for $2.9 million. The new iteration of Vernier Science Center, however, features a mezzanine between the first and second floors, two basement levels, and a covered pedestrian skybridge connecting the second floor to the adjacent Science Research and Teaching Center. Then reimagined six-story, 88,795-square-foot building, completed in 2024 by Bora Architecture and Skanska, however, now serves as an inclusive hub for STEM education, combining advanced laboratories, collaborative��classrooms��and community-centered spaces.����

The renovation not only updated the facility for contemporary STEM education but also created a new campus landmark. From the expanded entry level to the striking glass facades, every element reflects a thoughtful balance of accessibility, cultural responsiveness, and technical performance.��

Inclusive Design Process��

Engaging PSU’s diverse student body was critical to the project’s success. The team intentionally sought input from Black, Indigenous, and students of color to ensure the building met teaching and learning needs while celebrating the university’s diverse cultural backgrounds. Student voices informed everything from room programming to circulation patterns, lighting, and informal learning areas.��

“Creating inclusive, collaborative spaces was a priority in our new��building’s��design,” said Todd Rosenstiel, Dean of PSU’s College of Liberal��Arts��and Sciences. “In building this transformative and Indigenous-focused space, we brought to life a place of science and discovery created by and for Portland State University’s diverse population. We built an entire building based on stories of people.”��

The renovation also��leveraged��a Critical Race spatial lens to address historic inequities in science education. Engagement with BIPOC and Indigenous students guided a variety of project elements including programming, the integration of open and informal learning areas, artwork selection and even lighting design. Spaces such as a community gathering room, a decolonized library, and a food/plant teaching kitchen expand the typical lab offerings, allowing Indigenous communities to explore science in culturally meaningful ways. A “science on display” concept permeates the building, giving students opportunities to��showcase��their work collaboratively.��

Skanska Senior Superintendent Troy Boardman highlighted the thematic approach to the building’s facades.����

“Each of the four facing external facades has a unique theme including north toward the Columbia Gorge, east toward the Cascade Mountain Range, south toward the Willamette Valley and west toward the mountainous Coastal Range, which honors the Indigenous journeys to get here,” Boardman said. “Each design and construction consideration points to access in multi-disciplinary, collaborative spaces that promote engagement and co-creation.”��

This intentional inclusivity translated into a design that balances transparency and privacy, ensures accessibility, and incorporates material finishes that reflect local ecosystems and Indigenous culture. Human-scaled entryways and communal spaces embody PSU’s commitment to��equitable��access to STEM education.��

Engineering Excellence��

From an engineering perspective, the project posed significant technical challenges. Integrating seismic upgrades into an active campus environment��required��meticulous planning, careful sequencing, and constant coordination with faculty and staff.��

“Science buildings are inherently complex, and going��vertical��adds layers of coordination, especially when integrating dense mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems to support advanced lab environments,” said Schneider.��

The team employed laser scanning and Building Information Modeling (BIM) to capture precise conditions from the original 1967 structure. By��consolidating��MEP-intensive labs on upper floors, constructability was��optimized, and classroom construction could progress in parallel. The vertical layout also enhances interdisciplinary collaboration by stacking STEM disciplines within a compact footprint, improving connectivity between students and faculty.��

Additionally, the main floor was pushed outward by eight feet and wrapped in glass to strengthen connections to greenery and natural light. The resulting transparency creates visual access and encourages interaction, reflecting the building’s community-centered mission.��

Construction Strategy and Phasing��

Skanska developed the facility through a $62.8 million, three-phase plan to accommodate the active campus and research labs. Phase I involved demolition of Stratford Hall and relocation of research and lab services into nearby buildings. During demolition, concrete shears and real-time vibration��monitoring��minimized disruption to sensitive labs nearby.��

Phase II focused on the renovation of 48 rooms in the Science Research and Teaching Center while the building remained operational. Work was scheduled around class times, with noisy activities starting as early as 5 a.m., ensuring faculty and students moved only once during the transition.��

The final phase transformed Science Building One into the Vernier Science Center. Adjacent buildings were protected through air quality monitoring and safe pedestrian access management. Schneider emphasized the importance of combining technical precision with human-centered planning.����

“Our approach blended technical expertise with human-centered planning,” he said.��

The downtown campus location also posed logistical challenges, including high pedestrian traffic, narrow one-way��streets��and proximity to��the Portland��Streetcar. Just-in-time deliveries and real-time updates via QR codes along the fence line enabled uninterrupted material flow while keeping the campus community informed.��

Sustainability and Resilience��

Sustainability was a core principle throughout the project. Reuse of the original structure minimized embodied carbon, while mechanical upgrades and new double-glazed windows significantly improved energy efficiency. Smart energy practices, including LED lighting, controllable systems, low-emitting materials, and forestry-conscious wood products, supported the building’s pursuit of LEED Gold certification.��

Waste diversion exceeded 90%, achieved by rigorously sorting materials and prioritizing recycling and reuse. The demolition of Stratford Hall also created opportunities for regeneration, as the site now hosts a campus park with meandering paths, log seating, and native grasses, extending the building’s focus on wellness,��gathering��and reflection.��

Project Data��

• Project Name: Vernier Science Center��
• Location: Portland, Ore.��
• Area:��89,500 square feet��
• Construction Cost: $64.7 million��
• Architect: Bora Architecture & Interiors, Studio Petretti Architecture, Woofter Bolch Architecture��
• General Contractor: Skanska Building USA��
• Structural Engineer: Catena Consulting Engineers����
• Consulting Engineers: VEGA, Pace, Affiliated Engineers Inc., Samata, O-LLC, Jacobs Consultancy, PBS Environmental, Project PIVOT, Reichle��
• Acoustical and A/V Consultant: The��Greenbusch��Group��
• Technology Consultant: Vertex Technology Design & Consulting��
• Code Consultant: Code Unlimited (now Jensen Hughes)��
• Roofing: Professional Roof Consultants��
• Sustainability: SORA Design Group��
• Historic Preservation: ARG��
• Geotechnical Engineering: Geotechnical Resources Inc.��
• Foodservice Design: JBK Consulting & Design, Bargreen Ellingson��
• Commissioning: Precision Test and Balance��
• Abatement: Performance Abatement Services, Environmental Resource Inc.��
• Environmental Consultant: Anderson Environmental��
• Excavation: Weitman Excavation��
• Concrete Cutting and Drilling: Bedrock Commercial Concrete Cutting, Finish Line Concrete Cutting��
• Construction: Interior Exterior Specialists, Turtle Mt. Construction,��NativeWorks��LLC, Performance Contracting Inc.��
• Landscape Design: Pac Green Landscape��

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The project’s primary goal is to help transform the physical campus and rejuvenate the campus experience so that the university can reach its goal of becoming a Top 20 institution. It is also designed to encourage students to stay on campus longer by providing them with a quality living and learning environment. While the new buildings will include contemporary interior spaces, the exteriors will feature traditional brick facades and deep overhangs that match the Clemson aesthetic, making the village an ideal new entrance for the campus.

The central hub facility will be a key place for students to meet and engage, with a bookstore, coffee shop, 400-seat dining hall, convenience store and deli. Housing on the complex’s west side will be geared toward upperclassmen, with four apartment-style buildings. Approximately 700 beds will be available in studio-, two- and four-bedroom apartments. On the east side, an additional 780 beds will be spread across three buildings in double-occupancy rooms for students enrolled in the traditional Clemson program.

All eight buildings will be LEED Silver certified and include sustainable features such as directional, non-intrusive LED parking-area lighting that can be programmed remotely to shut off when not in use. A tree survey was also conducted on campus in order to preserve as many trees as possible during the project. Of the 800 trees existing on campus prior to construction, 300 will need to be removed; however, 400 additional trees will be planted in their place.

While the $212 million expansion project construction will focus on the eight new buildings, a large portion of the work will also go toward establishing supportive infrastructure, according to Clemson University team members Mike Parker, project manager, and Doug Hallenbeck, executive director for University Housing and Dining. This includes work related to utilities such as natural gas, potable water, storm water, sanitary sewers, electrical and communication systems, a central energy plant with chilled water distribution, roads and parking lots.

Washington, D.C.-based Ayers Saint Gross, Columbia, S.C.-based The Boudreaux Group and Virginia Beach, Va.-headquartered Clark Nexsen worked collaboratively to design the massive project. Parker and Hallenbeck said that students were also actively involved in the early phases of design, and focus groups have been used throughout the project to help make decisions on things such as furniture and food options.

The project team also has had to work closely with the city of Clemson residents, many of whom live adjacent to the development and were concerned about the impact this project would have on their neighborhood. It took several meetings and some honest conversations, but the two groups were able to come to a resolution, added Parker and Hallenbeck.

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Columbia, S.C.-based Boudreaux Group is serving as the architect on the $212.7 million project, joined by Virginia Beach, Va.-headquartered Clark Nexsen and Washington, D.C.-based Ayers Saint Gross for architectural design and engineering. Greensboro, N.C.-based Holden Construction Company is serving as the general contractor. The project is designed to achieve LEED Silver certification.

The South Carolina State Budget and Control Board Tuesday approved the sale of $183 million in bonds to finance construction of the student housing, retail and activity hub on the former Douthit Hills housing development. The project is divided into three zones: the West Zone, Central Zone and East Zone.

The West Zone will be comprised of five- and six-story residence halls, with 980 beds for upperclassmen. The new buildings will be a mix of studios and two- and four-bedroom apartments.

The East Zone will feature another group of four-story buildings, which will house 750 beds in traditional doubles for a select group of freshman. The East Zone housing facilities will also include a new-to-Clemson bathroom style called a “wet core.” Three locations on each floor will hold a cluster of three to four bathroom modules that include a toilet, sink and shower behind a single closed door allowing for privacy within the community.

The Central Zone will feature a 400-seat dining facility, a campus bookstore, a fitness center and other services for residents. The dining facility will also provide a gathering space for student groups to study or meet. Retail establishments such as a Starbucks Coffee, a convenience store and a deli will also be included. Construction is scheduled for completion in summer 2018.

While Douthit Hills is geared toward upperclassmen, the $96 million , which is also underway, will primarily house freshmen, sophomores and honors program students. The 260,000-square-foot project will have beds for 700 students and will include a dining hall that seats up to 1,000, replacing facilities that are more than 60 years old. The project is slated for completion in December 2016.

The student housing projects are being constructed at a time when the university is trying to catch up with its own growth and reach into a private housing market that has been growing rapidly to provide enough beds for Clemson students, reported . Clemson has increased its enrollment by more than 5,000 students over the past 10 years while reducing the number of on-campus housing units. A recent study by the city of Clemson found current rental properties at 99 percent occupancy. Several hundred students were living in hotels last semester because apartments they had planned to rent hadn’t been given the green light for occupancy by the city in time.

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The $187 million building, which serves both the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix and Northern Arizona University, was noted for its boldness and innovative design of the interdisciplinary building that serves the colleges of medicine allied health and biomedical informatics. The new building is located on the Phoenix Biomedical Campus in downtown Phoenix.

“The design team found an opportunity to place a powerful symbol of a region’s identity, a canyon for higher learning, in the middle of a chaotic modern city. In effect, the architecture represents a geological formation, providing for a landmark for self- reflection and discourse, and the fluid exchange of ideas for healing,” said Paul Zajfen, FAIA, design principal for CO Architects. “This concept of geology would be accessible and visible to the city, expressed literally on the surfaces of the building’s copper façade, which mimics the rock striations found in the Arizona landscape – striations that are the records of geology’s adaptations to events throughout time. Canyons appear to be cut out of the building, through the façade at strategic points, creating areas for skylights and light wells.”

The HSBE was one of four designs chosen for the AIACC’s Honor Award out of 279 entries.

The design of 286,000-square-foot, six-story building was inspired by the surrounding landscape of the Arizona desert, as well as the geology of the mountains and canyons. The desert-like appearance was executed through the use of striated and folded exterior copper cladding as well as the two wings of the building, which create intentionally narrow “canyons.”

“The search for a cladding material that supported the goal of representing the Arizona landscape led to copper panels, because copper is a recyclable, self-finishing, naturally weathering material that has symbolic power as one of the natural resources of Arizona,” Zajfen said.

The building was constructed to meet LEED-NC Gold certification and paid special attention to the use of abundant Arizona daylight and responds to the areas need to reduce energy consumption. The lower level of the building and fewer windows as the building gets higher for heat control. The south-facing facades combine overhangs with perforated screens to function as sunshades and vertical fins control on the north side of the building.

“This building makes a statement on the land, while also being contextual to the site. Its bold design, shape, and color are appealing,” Zajfen said. “The creativity and effort that went into the exterior skin of the building is a factor, as well.”

Ayers Saint Gross, with offices in Tempe, Ariz., served as associate architect and master planner for the project while a joint venture between DPR Construction and Sundt Construction, both with offices in Phoenix, led construction.

Other awards for CO Architect’s design of HSBE include the AIA National Technology in Architectural Practice Building Information Model Excellence Award for Stellar Architecture Using BIM; the Best of LA Architects Award from the Los Angeles Business Council; an International Interior Design Association Southwest Chapter Pride Awards Design Excellence in Education and Outstanding Team on a Design Project award; and the Arizona Real Estate and Development Award for Most Challenging Project. The design is also a finalist for the Arizona Forward Environmental Excellence Award.

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