Seattle-based CollinsWoerman has designed structures for Bastyr’s Center for Natural Health (LEED certified) in the past, before undertaking the new student village project. With a unique layout and design, the eleven buildings are not a traditional student housing project, and the design gives the collective quarters a feel that’s more in tune with a co-op, rather than student dorms. Each cottage has 12 private rooms and bathrooms, along with large common areas including living, kitchen and dining spaces. A quiet study room, bike storage and laundry facilities provide even more amenities.
The cottages are arranged around a courtyard and are situated next to shared gardens that can be used to grow herbs (medicinal or for cooking). Bioswales skirt the project to help collect and process stormwater, and a conscious effort was made to maintain as many of the existing trees as possible. Disturbance of the surrounding area during construction was minimized in order to maintain the pristine campus in Kenmore, WA, just outside of Seattle.
Each of the cottages feature a three-story tower of bedrooms connected to a two-story volume for the communal areas. A butterfly roof on the tower collects and directs rainwater into a large shared Olympic swimming size pool storage tank beneath a nearby parking lot. The flat roofs over the communal areas were built in order to support a green roof in the future.
Passive solar design, large overhangs, and natural ventilation with operable windows all help to minimize energy use. The measures are complimented by radiant floor heating, ultra high efficiency gas boilers and water heaters, high r-value insulation, and high efficiency lighting systems with daylight controls. Eco-friendly, low VOC, locally-sourced, FSC-certified lumber, and reclaimed materials were used within the building, while low maintenance and durable cement board is placed on the exterior and serves as a rain screen.
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Images ©Lara Swimmer and Karen Steichen/
