SB&A, working with LMN Architects planned and designed this challenging site for the placement of the Higher Education Center on the HCC Campus. The building houses existing HCC Programs but also is used as a satellite campus for Central Washington University. The landscape architects, working with representatives of HCC and CWU decided to include in the design of the site, elements that reflected the landscape of Ellensburg, the home of CWU. Also, the site design had to accept firelanes on both sides of the building, a bus stop at the main entrance and transitions to the parking lot, and buildings to the north and west of the site.
The eastern side of the building now resembles a forested glade with an over-story of tall deciduous trees on either side of a pedestrian walk (and emergency access) connecting the south parking lot to the interior of the campus. The understory is composed of native shrubs and groundcovers with selected ornamentals providing seasonal color and textural interest. Many of the plants are found both in western and eastern Washington.The western elevation of the building provides views above and through the existing forested landscape to the Olympics beyond, and provides a fire lane for access. The fire lane is disguised as a clover meadow over grasscrete to blend aesthetics of the access into the surrounding landscape.
