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Overview

This lecture hall stood just off the main plaza of the campus, like that at the University of Washington, Seattle, known as "Red Square." Originally designed in the prevailing architectural aesthetic prevalent for higher education, Brutalism, the building's prominent location made it a candidate for architectural renovation and updating. Brutalism was frequently used for college buildings at the Evergreen and the UW finished in the late 1960s and early 1970s. and became a style hated by some and loved by others. The face-lift and enlargement of this lecture hall, later named, "Purce Hall," was completed in 2016.

Building History

The hall was named for former Evergreen President Les Purce (2000-2015) on 11/09/2016.

Alteration

Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects, headquartered in Portland, OR, refaced, reorganized, enlarged and improved the energy efficiency of this 1970s era lecture hall in 2016. The ZGF website said of its work here: "Originally designed in the brutalist style of architecture, the renovation transforms the existing facility from an inwardly focused, steeply-tiered, fixed-seat lecture style classroom facility into a flexible, student-centered active learning space that supports a variety of pedagogies and acts as a hub for students, faculty, and visitors. The design retains the building’s largest lecture hall and three gently tiered lecture halls and adds two 80-seat flip classrooms, two 30-seat flat floor classrooms, and an active rotunda. In addition to ambitious goals for developing modern learning spaces that reflect the campus culture of innovation, the design provided equity through accessibility by eliminating the need for elevators and stairs to reach each instruction space. Designed to align with Evergreen’s commitment to environmental sustainability the project is LEED Gold® and uses sustainable strategies such as rooftop monitors to bring daylight throughout circulation spaces and is net-zero ready with the potential for rooftop photovoltaics." The Absher Construction Company of Puyallup, WA, was the building contractor for the $12.75 million renovation.

An article in The Olympian.com of 11/05/2016 said of the refurbishment: "Much of the wood, including some classic 1970s slat paneling that decorated Lecture Hall 1, and other materials were preserved from the original building and incorporated into the remodel. About three-quarters of the concrete exterior was kept, too, according to college spokesman Todd Sprague. Crews used high quality insulation and installed a mechanical system that is meant to maximize energy efficiency, said construction project coordinator Tim Byrne. The building uses LED lights, and makes the most of natural light with skylights and extra-large windows. Wooden beams that can be seen throughout the building were approved by the Forest Stewardship Council, which means they were sustainably harvested, Sprague said. “It is solar-ready,” Byrne added, noting thatsolar collection panels could be installed in the future, but won’t be at this time because of the cost." (See Lisa Pemberton, The Olympian.com, "$12.75 million converts Evergreen's lecture building into Purce Hall," published 11/05/2016, accessed 11/05/2024.)

PCAD id: 20062