1 AIA LU|HSW Available
Topic - Opsis Architects will discuss the HONOR AWARD winning Leodis V. McDaniel School and the MERIT AWARD winning Idaho Central Credit Union Arena
Reimagining the High School typology for a Multi-Cultural context
This transformational renovation and expansion of the 1958 mid-century modern high school with existing isolated levels, dead-end corridors, and poor wayfinding gives way to a cohesive and vibrant learning environment. As the city’s most diverse student population speaking over 30 languages, the design builds community through the removal of obstructive and antiquated spaces and the insertion of new additions with increased transparency and openness where students discover new learning opportunities, cross paths, and make connections. The multi-story crossroads atrium created at the nexus of the school weaves together five levels and multiple academic wings that step down the steeply sloped site. The new double-height Commons infills an under-utilized courtyard and redefines the obscured main entry into a welcoming arrival experience.
Creating a sense of purpose and place in arena design
The new University of Idaho Central Credit Union (ICCU) Arena is a showpiece for the Vandal Athletics program, providing a unique gathering place for sports, concerts and events, while celebrating Idaho’s timber heritage with innovative mass timber construction. Designed as a multi-event and court sport facility, the arena accommodates 4,000 spectators and includes the main court, practice court, locker rooms, conference space, concessions, media room, and offices. The project serves as a national model for the use of mass timber for long-span sport facilities; the design showcases the use of innovative wood materials with a particular emphasis on Idaho forest products.
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Presenters
Alec Holser, FAIA
Founding Principal, Opsis
Alec Holser’s transformative designs for cultural and learning environments have elevated and integrated pioneering sustainable design to the highest level of beauty and craft while connecting users to a future in balance with nature. Alec’s projects emerge from an open dialogue with communities and a nuanced understanding of program, space, material and light. Since co-founding Opsis Architecture in 1999, Alec has led the design of many of the firm’s award-winning education projects that teach through discovery, connections, and synergies. Some of Alec’s most notable education projects include Portland Public Schools’ McDaniel High School, the nation’s first ILFI Certified net-zero energy public school and the AIA COTE Top Ten award-winning Hood River Middle School in Oregon, and the net-zero AIA COTE Top Ten award-winning Oregon Zoo Education Center.
Chris Roberts, AIA
Principal, Opsis
Chris brings a depth of expertise in architectural design and project management to all the sports, recreation and higher education projects he is a part of. His architectural philosophy of innovative pragmatism draws inspiration from the unique sense of place inherent in every campus and community. His skills and expertise have been honed from work on projects ranging in size and complexity from the award winning, long span mass timber Idaho Central Credit Union Arena at the University of Idaho to performing arts centers, libraries, and recreation centers throughout the pacific northwest. Chris’s thoughtful integration of timber products within sports and recreation venues places him at the forefront of innovation in the practice, application and design possibilities of sustainable materials in the built environment.