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The University of Oregon last week gave students, faculty and the public a first look at its proposed first building of the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact.

The first phase of the proposed $1.1 billion project is taking shape as a gleaming, $225 million structure that will sit on the Eugene campus’ north end, north of Franklin Boulevard. Nearly half of the cost is expected to be covered by a $500 million gift from Phil and Penny Knight.

鈥淭he mission of the Knight campus is very ambitious and speaks about the future,鈥� said Todd Schliemann, design partner at New York-based Ennead Architects. 鈥淲e wanted a building that was forward-looking and not retro.鈥�

Ennead Architects is the project’s lead designer; however, Bora Architects is the architect of record. The Portland firm will handle technical drawings and participate in construction.

The glass building will have an L-shape, with two towers connected by a covered lounge. One of the building’s most prominent features will be a glass sky bridge over Franklin Boulevard connecting to the existing Lewis Integrative Science Building.

鈥淭echnically, all science buildings are interconnected,鈥� said John O’Toole, a Bora Architects principal. 鈥淵ou could go over the road with the bridge or under with a tunnel.鈥�

Because a tunnel would have to be very deep in order to avoid utility lines, a bridge became a more practical option.

鈥淭he campus itself is supposed to be a collaborative environment, so (students) need to go back and forth across Franklin,鈥� said Mike Harwood, a UO associate vice president and university architect for campus planning and facilities management. 鈥淭he bridge is an expression of our desire to reach the (Willamette) River.鈥�

The building will have 160,000 square feet of space for researchers in life, physical and prevention sciences. The structure will also house management and communications offices for the Knight program and have mezzanines, meeting rooms and public spaces.

鈥淧utting that amount of footage on the site was a challenge,鈥� Schliemann said. 鈥淭he site was long and narrow. We wanted the new building to be on same geometry as the rest of the campus so it wasn’t an isolated building. That is why we went with the L-shape. It worked out tremendously well.鈥�

The building will feature double-paned glass walls. The inner walls will be solid glass and sit 18 inches from the outer walls. The outer walls feature numerous white dots.

鈥淭he frit pattern will be hard to detect,鈥� O’Toole said. 鈥淚t will be a subtle pattern.鈥�

During the summer, the outer wall will heat up, and hot air trapped between the panes of glass will rise and escape at the top of the structure.

鈥淵ou save tremendous amount of money on the AC,鈥� Schliemann said. 鈥淚t is not mechanical, so they don’t have to maintain it. It can add depth to the fa莽ade and it eliminates glare inside (the building).鈥�

The dots on the outer pane will be visible to people outside, but allow people inside to see beyond 鈥� much like some advertisements on bus and light-rail train windows. The added benefit is that is that it acts as a visual cue for birds to keep them from flying into the structure.

鈥淚t’s a tried-and-true technology,鈥� Schliemann said. 鈥淢illions of birds fly into glass walls because they see the reflection of the sky. This bird-proofs the glass.鈥�

The glass design also will allow light to flood open spaces inside. The interior design is intended to provide a collaborative atmosphere.

鈥淚 think the interior will be honest expression of the structure,鈥� O’Toole said. 鈥淲e are hoping to use mass timber and CLT (cross-laminated timber) for portions of the building.鈥�

General contractor Hoffman Construction will begin demolition of several structures on the site in February 2018. Primary construction is expected to start next spring.

University officials are planning to open the building in 2020, and then begin tackling the rest of the new campus.

鈥淭his project is transformative in stretching the (existing university) campus from the historic core,鈥� Harwood said. 鈥淭his campus is the first step in seeing what that future will be.鈥�

On the Boards is a 91视频 feature offering a look at the projects in Oregon being tackled by local architecture firms. To have your firm’s projects considered, contact 91视频 architecture and engineering reporter Kent Hohlfeld at 503-802-7224 or [email protected].