High Performance Goals:
-Straight grain cedar siding with a water based stain
-Long overhangs with bracing and a trellis to reduce glare from southwestern and western light
-Manually operated sun shading that further reduces glare
-Low-VOC water based stains and paints
-3 separate mechanical zones in this 7,000 sf building for controlability
-Lighting levels designed lower than typical with increased levels of occupant control
-Maximum acceptable amount of fly ash in concrete
-High recycled content steel
-High-albeto gravel and metal roofs to reduce the heat island effect
-High recycled content blown-in cellulose wall insulation
-Low-VOC board insulation at roof
-Straight grain cedar siding with a water based stain
-Long overhangs with bracing and a trellis to reduce glare from southwestern and western light
-Manually operated sun shading that further reduces glare
-Low-VOC water based stains and paints
-3 separate mechanical zones in this 7,000 sf building for controlability
-Lighting levels designed lower than typical with increased levels of occupant control
-Maximum acceptable amount of fly ash in concrete
-High recycled content steel
-High-albeto gravel and metal roofs to reduce the heat island effect
-High recycled content blown-in cellulose wall insulation
-Low-VOC board insulation at roof
The Visitor Center in Cheyenne Mountain State Park was designed to express its context. On a site where the Western Plains meet the Rocky Mountains, the architecture blends in its environment with natural materials of wood and indigenous stone and a muted green and gold color palette inside and out. Upon arrival to the site, the Visitor Center greets nature lovers with a one-story lodge-like building flanked by two discreet administrative wings. The main hall of the Visitor Center houses a gift shop, coffee shop and spaces for exhibits. Its crown jewel is the large glass wall and stone fireplace that face an unobstructed view of Cheyenne Mountain. On the Plains side, a curved sandstone wall frames the wing buildings, a subtle indication of the new topography that offers protection from the plains' extreme winds.