Sustainable Design
Big Springs Parking Structure 2 AWARDED TO: UC Riverside Transportation Services OWNER: University of California, Riverside PRIME CONSULTANT: Design-build team of PCL, Watry Design, Inc.,
and Steinberg-Hart TOTAL COST: $24,500,000
Judges’ Comments:
“The project checked many boxes. It was built out of need and focused on renewable, regional, and recycled materials from day one. The project included additional sustainable elements, like a commitment to EV charging, but was not excessive.” “Achieving Gold LEED status while aiming for Silver is a remarkable achievement.”
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estled into a hillside with a magnificent view of Box Springs Mountain is the University of California, Riverside’s (UC Riverside) newest four-level parking facility, Big Springs Parking Structure 2. Prominently located at the east end of campus, it opened in August 2021, adding 1,079 parking spaces for students, staff, faculty, and visitors and directly responding to the demands of a growing university whose development projects were taking over older surface lots. When UC Riverside began the planning process to provide additional parking for the expanding campus, goals were developed to guide the design and construction process. The facility needed to preserve campus land for possible future academic development; be a model for future campus transportation facilities; push industry standards for efficient facility design, delivery, and operation; and meet or exceed the university’s sustainability goals and California’s green building program requirements. To meet these goals, the Parksmart certification program was used as a design and construction guide for the project development team. At the completion of construction, the campus submitted the project and operating documentation required by the Parksmart program for review to attain a Silver certification level. However, the team’s diligence and attention to detail paid off, and the project achieved Gold certification. Among the sustainable design elements were: ● Regional, reused, repurposed, and recycled materials comprise the parking structure, which was constructed with regional labor.
78 PARKING & MOBILITY / JUNE 2023 / PARKING-MOBILITY-MAGAZINE.ORG
PHOTO CREDIT: PABLO MASON