The client, a prominent academic ‘think tank’ at a large California university, needed a gracious venue to host its quarterly “retreats”, which are public policy conferences for approximately 400 participants from all over the world. The primary programmatic challenge was to create a gracious venue for multi-day events that include sessions, meals, receptions and networking. And while a collegial feeling was desirable, the facility also had to be suitable to host the very high profile political speakers that the institution invites.

The 26,000-square-foot ground floor houses a 400-seat auditorium, a large multi-purpose room, a flexible “pavilion used for pre-function and smaller events, and frames an entry forecourt and a more private courtyard beyond. All these large spaces flow out through a mediating arcade, then directly to the landscape. The second floor houses the institutions administrative offices, arrayed in such a manner to introduce natural light and spectacular views to all areas of the floor.

Siting and massing of the building reinforce the strong geometry of the campus. The main two-story rectangular volume is a modern interpretation of the campus vocabulary of stone buildings with tile roofs; the walls are clad with limestone panels topped by a halo of glazing at the office level. An interior arcade provides a mediating space between the event spaces and the courtyards, allowing for smaller scale gatherings.

The interior of the ground floor is richly appointed with warm wood paneling and ceilings, all of which is doing double duty as elegant finishes while absorbing sound and controlling reverberations so that the spoken word events are crystal clear. On the office floor, ample interior glazing shares the light and views, and two generous terraces are carved into the rectangular volume and host formal and informal gatherings and allow light even further into the floor plate.

Photography: Timothy Griffith