"I love renovation projects" is something
you won't hear most architects say. But
at LPA, we say it all the time. When
clients turn to us with their renovation
projects, many can't imagine how anyone
could possibly make something "so run
down," "so outdated" and "completely
non-functional" into anything meaningful.
However, that is exactly what we did in the
two projects highlighted this month.
Riverside Community College District's
Center for Civil Liberties and Social Justice
has been renovated and restored to reveal
its original ornate Spanish Baroque façade.
The renovated two-level exhibition gallery
and museum honors Riverside-born artist
Mine Okubo and offers a clean, modern
interior that provides an ideal canvas to
showcase Okubo's works.
Cypress College's Humanities Building
houses the two largest instructional
divisions at the college, and its resulting
design reactivates vacant social and study
spaces, improves building efficiency and
offers modern technologies, all while
respecting the existing architecture.
Functionally, the two buildings are
completely different from one another,
but we have designed them with a similar
approach. We stripped away all of the
rough edges to expose and express the
buildings structures and filled them simply
and judiciously with light, color, texture and
technology.
We love renovation projects because we
believe they are truly our most sustainable
opportunities to conserve, reuse, recycle
and rejuvenate our environment.
Editor's Note
Sustainable Renovations
Steve Flanagan, AIA, LEED AP BD+C
Principal, Senior Designer
LPA Inc.
sflanagan@LPAinc.com