Emeryville Center of Community Life

Please Join us for Community Design Workshop 9

Join us for the upcoming ECCL Community Design Workshop #9 on Saturday, May 19, 2012 from 9:30am to 11:30 am at Anna Yates Elementary School where we have the opportunity to learn from each other and help create the Emeryville Center of Community Life that will be valued by the community. We will continue our conversations as Schematic Design commences and ask you to help our design team think about the look and feel you think is appropriate for the ECCL as well as your thoughts on additional functional needs. We’d love to see you (and a friend) at these meetings as this is really where the "Architecture" phase of the work really begins. I’m more than happy to answer any questions you may have—give me a call or shoot over an email: wendy.chew@emeryusd.org, 510.601.4950

Future Community Design Workshops dates now set...

We hope you will attend as many future Community Design Workshops as possible. The dates for future Community Design Workshops 10-14 have been scheduled as follows - Please stay tuned as the specific times and locations are being developed:

CDW 10: Thursday 6/14/2012

CDW 11: Saturday 7/7/2012

CDW 12: Saturday 9/8/2012

CDW 13: Saturday 10/27/2012

CDW 14: Saturday 12/8/2012

 

Community Design Workshop 8 Summary

Thank you to all who participated in the 8th Community Workshop to shape the ECCL! The workshop was well represented by youth and students who also participated in the presentation of materials to the Community. A wide range of images of other buildings and community centers around the world were presented to the participants in order to understand what types of architectural language and composition might be appropriate for the ECCL. Using interactive voting, the paritcipants weighed in on what resonated positively and what did not. From this exercise, the design team will be able to work more effectively to develop an architecture that the community and users will find most pleasing. The image set and the Community voting results are provided below. Additional materials will be uploaded here as they become available including community voting responses to the conceptual design presentation and additional areas of concern requiring further development.

• Community Design Workshop 8 - Introduction & Review (9 MB, PDF format)
• Community Design Workshop 8 - Architectural Character Image Presentation (14 MB, PDF format)
• Community Design Workshop 8 - Community Voting Results (260 KB, PDF format)

Community Design Workshop 7 Summary

Members of the Emeryville Community as well as users and staff reviewed the approved City / Schools Conceptual Design and also weighed in on the emerging conversation of what the ECCL should look like through the use of interactive voting technology. The materials presented are now posted below as well as in the Archives & Reports section.

Community Design Workshop 7 - Conceptual Design Presentation

ECCL Conceptual Design - Site Organization and Massing (above)

To view materials from the previous Community Design Workshops please check the Archives.

 

Conceptual Design Finalization: City Schools Committee Presentation

Please click the link below to view the March 1, 2012 City Schools Presentation. The committee will be considering the approval of the final conceptual design for the ECCL, setting the stage for the Schematic Design process to commence. The schematic design process begins where conceptual design ends, and is a continuation of the design process with much more community input ahead. While general building placement and general massing on the site will be considered fixed as of the completion of Conceptual design much more design work is ahead. Schematic design begins the process that many consider to be "real architect rue". It is in this stage that the Nexus Partners will, with your ongoing input, begin to study the aesthetics ("look and feel" of the buildings), and outdoor landscape as well as developing the interior spaces and more technical requirements of the facility.

• Final Conceptual Design Presentation
• City / Schools Committee - Final Conceptual Design Video Feed (Navigate to March 1, 2012 Meeting Date. Presentation begins at 1:25 mark)

Community Design Workshop 6 Summary

Thank you to all who participated in the 6th Community Workshop to shape the ECCL! Joe Feldman led us through a discussion of "small schools" - what they are and how this concept applies to the ECCL. The materials presented are posted below as well as in the Archives & Reports section. To view materials from the previous Community Design Workshops please check the Archives.

• Community Design Workshop 6 Presentation

Community Design Workshop 5 Summary

Hayin Kim led a community conversation about Community Programs: Understanding a Community School Approach. The materials presented are posted below as well as in the Archives & Reports section. To view materials from the previous Community Design Workshops please check the Archives.

• Community Design Workshop 5 Presentation
• Community Voting Results: Criteria for Successful Programs

Conceptual Design Presentation

Nexus Partners presented the proposed Conceptual Design to the City / School Committee on October 6, 2011. The design team worked to incorporate and address the many ideas discussed in Community Design Workshops 1 & 2. The file is rather large (12mb), so please be patient when downloading. Conceptual Design Presentation

About this website

Together with support and guidance from the City of Emeryville , the Emery Unified School District (EUSD), and the Citizens' Oversight Committee (C.O.C.) The Nexus Partners have undertaken the development of this site to permit a greater level of participation by the Emeryville community in the shaping of the future Emeryville Center of Community Life (ECCL). The Nexus Partners is comprised of three design firms: MKThink , Concordia , and dsk.

This site will evolve rapidly as information becomes available and as the community voice takes its rightful place in the conversation. With your patience and your input we will try to make this website as user friendly as possible and the information it shares transparent to all. Keep in mind this site is a work in progress and if additional tools can be added to support enhanced information sharing and encourage greater participation we will make every reasonable attempt to make this site responsive to your needs. If you have any thoughts or comments about how we can improve this interface, please contact us.

How can you participate?

If you would like to share your opinions please do so - we want to encourage broad participation. By clicking here or the link "Join the Conversation" in the navigation pane of this page you will be directed to a site hosted by Ning which provides a platform for two-way community conversations, a blog and a community forum, and image & video sharing. We will work to integrate this site with other familiar social networking sites to facilitate your preferred method of communicating and staying informed.

This website is designed specifically for you to interact with other members of the Emeryville community as well as the design and consultant team, city & school leaders that will help direct the ECCL design toward the solution that is both right-sized and valued by the community it will serve. To participate in the Ning site you will need to create a user profile and answer a few simple demographic questions. If you need instructions to join for the first time click here. Once you've created your user profile you will not need to go through this process again.

Activities, Timelines and Current Work

To stay up to date with current and future activities related to the ECCL there are several resources available. Click the 'At-A-Glance Calendar' link to view the range of anticipated work and associated timelines.

For more specific information related to current work and work products click the links labeled "Facilities Development", "Relationship Development" and "Project Supports" at the top of the page

Concept Images from the Nexus Partners

The following images were prepared by the Nexus Partners during the architectural selection process in 2009. For a link to the abbreviated presentation click here. These images in no way represent a final design solution, but rather ideas that were explored during the design team selection process in 2009 and are offered here in the interest of sharing early ideas with a broader community audience. The Nexus Partners looks forward to a more direct community engagement process to advance the design further.

1. View from the community terrace overlooking the commons. Click on the image for a 3D animation that leads to this view

2. View from within the community library overlooking the commons. Click on the image for a 3D animation that leads to this view

3. A day in the life of the ECCL - How can we avoid designing single purpose spaces that are often left empty and unused during the week. We are thinking of ways to extend the utilization of every space to avoid unused rooms to the greatest extent possible. See how these three images suggest how this can happen: School Use during weekday daytime hours - View from the second level terrace serving learning studios overlooking the commons. Click on the image for a 3D animation that leads to this view

4. A day in the life of the ECCL - Public access after school hours - afternoon weekdays & weekends - View from the second level terrace serving after school community classes and activities overlooking the commons. Click on the image for a 3D animation that leads to this view

5. A day in the life of the ECCL - Public access after school hours - evenings / weekdays & weekends - View from the second level terrace overlooking the commons hosting a community event. Click on the image for a 3D animation that leads to this view

ECCL Background & Vision

Introduction Many cities today struggle with the realities of modern times: transient populations, busy schedules, long commutes, reliance on technological conveniences, distrust of the unfamiliar, and the challenges of economic disparity and population displacement. The consequent habit that results, a kind of urban anonymity and isolation within the density of the place, often takes us away from knowing our neighbors and feeling individually responsible for our collective community. The significant advancements in Emeryville over the last decade or so could potentially take us down this path of urban detachment, inaccessibility, and isolation. However, the City of Emeryville also consciously and intentionally believes that, even in our most challenging times, it is through our relationships and with a clear understanding of our common humanity that we have been able to carve an innovative and imaginative path to a better future. It is because of these convictions that we seize this moment as an opportunity to pause, reflect on our history, consider our resources, and imagine the community that we want to become. At the core of this vision is our collective commitment to interrupting an otherwise inevitable trajectory towards that dense urban anonymous environment that no one wishes to create. Instead of traveling that route, we intend to realize our dream of an Emeryville that is finely aligned with our deeply held beliefs about the factors that build a high quality civic environment. Today we seek to accentuate what makes Emeryville a different kind of modern city. We wish to create a city where you can chat with your elected representatives, a city that thrives with the participation of its local businesses, a city defined by its residents and their relationships, a city that acknowledges and works on the difficult challenges of inequity and racial complexity, a city that invests in its future through its young people, a city that respects the experience and expertise embodied in its seniors, and a city that understands and lives by the saying that “it takes a village”. We recognize though many other cities struggle with these questions, there are a few models to follow. We believe that our honesty and dedication to this vision, however, equips us to pursue original and creative ideas, processes, and outcomes. We invite you, citizens and businesses of Emeryville, to join us in these efforts.

Vision The Emeryville Center of Community Life is a joint project of the City of Emeryville and the Emery Unified School District. When completed the complex will include significant new square footage plus additional renovated square footage. It will be constructed at the site of the existing Emery Secondary School, replacing and/or incorporating the existing one story school facility with a new multi-story, multi-use campus. The site has potential to incorporate an elementary school, secondary school, community center, and space for social service providers. While still to be designed, outdoor spaces would include multi-use sports fields, playgrounds, a community courtyard, and a series of paths and plazas. The new Center is envisioned to incorporate a range of sustainable features including passive elements such as daylighting and natural ventilation, as well as active systems such as water conserving fixtures and photovoltaic solar panels to generate energy on site. When completed, it truly will become the heart of the diverse and vibrant community that is Emeryville. Key Outcomes A unique and special place where schools, community services, arts and recreation programs are integrated to serve the entire Emeryville Community. A place that will transform the quality of life for all citizens of Emeryville by offering educational, recreational, cultural and social opportunities, and a variety of services and programs to support lifelong learning and healthy lifestyles. Public access to facilities and services for art, music and dance, job training, after school activities, fitness, technology, and health and social services. A continuum of services for everyone from infants to senior citizens, including health and family support programs, academic and career counseling, pre-kindergarten programs and parent resources.