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Overview

Architects Maurice Sullam and Norman Aehle finished the first Green River Community College Master Plan in 1964. The plan stated broadly: "The Master Plan for the ultimate campus is contemplated in two phases. Phase I contains 140,000 square feet, housing 1000 F.T.E. (full time equivalent) students; Phase II, housing an additional 1500 student, is anticipated to require an additional 110,968 S.F. of building area. Under current State regulations, it is anticipated that it will take about ten years to realize the ultimate development of this plan." Buildings were prioritized by importance as to which would received funding first. Aehle emphasized maintaining as much of the natural beauty as possible, and for the campus to remain compact with buildings positioned close together and linked by covered walkways.

Building History

In 07/1963, the Auburn Superintendent of Schools, William Hayes Holman (1905-1995), hired the firm of Sullam and Aehle to design the new Green River Campus. In 09/1963, Aehle, Sullam, Holman, and future Green River President Melvin Lindbloom, toured the well-developed junior college system of CA for ideas on plan, layout and curricula. They toured junior colleges in Marysville, (Yuba College founded in 1911), Modesto (Modesto Junior College, formed in 1921), San Mateo (College of San Mateo, founded as the San Mateo Junior College in 1922), Stockton, (San Joaquin Delta College, founded as Stockton Junior College in 1935),Rocklin, (Sierra Community College, established in 1936), and Los Altos (Foothill Junior College, formed in 1957).

Ernest Kump, Jr.'s architecture of Foothill, particularly, attracted wide national attention. Foothill's design affected Aehle, but not in the manner one might expect. The architect witnessed how concrete floors had to be broken up with disruptive jackhammers to install an aquarium in a building about one year old. According to Laura Tordenti in her Seattle University doctoral dissertation, A History of Green River Community College from Its Founding through 1980, "The noise and mess of this renovation so struck Aehle that he began thinking about ways in which disruptive and costly future renovations could be avoided or minimized at Green River." Sullam and Aehle developed general design principles to make Green River's building more adaptable. They emphasized use of wood framing for ease of alteration. To minumize costly grading of the landscape, the architects set buildings on posts above the ground plane. Buildings were also raised off the ground to enable quick access underneath floors; similarly, Aehle set aside four feet above ceilings to serve various purposes and provide effortless changes in ductwork, wiring and plumbing.

Sullam and Aehle established six main points on the layout and design of the campus:

"1.) Design campus for (State Board limitation on enrollment) of 2,500 (full-time equivalent) students.
2.) Library to be primary focus of campus.
3.) Locate student center to draw vocational and academic students together.
4.) Provide for change of function and/or expansion of academic vocational, and science technology programs.
5.) Locate physical educaion building near fields and parking lot.
6.) Provide parking for approximately 1800 cars about equally divided east and west of compus." (See Laura Tordenti, A History of Green River Community College from Its Founding through 1980, doctoral dissertation, Seattle University, 1996, p. 73.)

PCAD id: 16019