This project by HKS Architects won a 2014 Award of Honor from the AIAOrlando chapter by an independent jury selection. Parkview Housing is an on-campus residence hall providing 620 students with new housing that promotes an active live/learn community environment through a variety of common-use spaces. The project is located in the southwest quadrant of the campus just north of the university’s football stadium. The building creates a forecourt to game-day activities and is positioned to overlook the campus’ nature preserve, providing students a choice in viewing experiences between a more urban environment to the east and a more natural landscape to the west. Parkview is seeking LEED Gold certification.
The design solution for the building was derived from its inextricable connection to the unique site conditions and the series of outdoor rooms shaped by the elements of the project. By dividing the program into two components, these could frame both sides of an existing street, creating a vibrant MAIN STREET environment supporting a variety of student life activities. This naturally divided the outdoor spaces into four distinct zones: the Stadium Plaza, Main Street, Panther Alley (the area between Panther Hall and the parking garage) and the Preserve, each with a unique landscape character and spatial quality. The connectivity between the building’s residential blocks was enhanced by a COMMONS BRIDGE, designed as not only a unifying element at the 3rd floor, but also as additional student spaces for study, recreation and repose. The figural head of the design evolved from the decision to link all the student commons spaces into a singular continuum of similar uses. The assembly of these spaces begins in the east with an amenities deck on top of the garage, lingers through the COMMONS BRIDGE, and culminates in the projected space of the MULTI-PURPOSE ROOM to the west. The ground floor of both buildings will contain offices, staff apartments, and large open areas which may be enclosed in the future for retail and/or academic functions, or left open to provide shaded outdoor gathering areas.
This project also received a National Gold Award for Best Conceptual Student Housing, from Habitation Design Magazine. You can learn more about HKS and this project on their website at this link: http://www.hksinc.com/places/florida-international-university-parkview-student-housing/
