Mesa CC Celebrates Opening of New Building at Red Mountain
Chuckwallas, tarantulas and rattlesnakes were all on display as 250 students, faculty and community members came together to celebrate the opening of MCC’s new 43,000 square-foot Saguaro building at Red Mountain, September 3. The indigenous Sonoran Desert creatures are housed in the lobby’s expansive terrarium which showcases the building’s unique environment for learning, supporting life science and performing arts programs.
“The building itself is a nice blending of the arts and sciences,” said Jo Wilson, dean of Red Mountain campus. “Rarely do you find in an educational institution, life sciences and research labs housed in the same facility as a performing arts center.”
In addition to the terrarium, the SmithGroup-designed facility enriches life science courses through a variety of distincitve architectural features. Bat roosts on the building’s south façade are designed to attract Mexican Free-tailed bats and adjacent observation windows located in classrooms allow a direct view for students. On the ground below the roosts, a snake wrangling pit aids in the study of snakes and reptiles. Two additonal terrariums will be home to rattlesnakes and tree frogs and serve as transparent walls for adjoining classrooms.
The performing arts component includes practice rooms and a Rehearsal and Performance Centre which has state-of-the-art lighting and sound systems. The RAP Centre’s architectural form, color and texture was inspired by nearby Red Mountain and when the exterior’s perforated rusted metal is illuminated at night the facility serves as a beacon inviting the community to campus events.
The day’s celebration was complimented with a variety of displays, demonstrations and tours of the building which were hosted by faculty, staff and Phi Theta Kappa students. Topics included; desert life, undergraduate research, library resources, international education, the RAP Centre’s acoustic capabilities and the Leadership in Energy, Environment and Design (LEED) efforts of the building.
“Students are the ones who have led the agenda to qualify for LEED gold certification,” said Wilson. “They came to us with the concept of educating others about LEED processes and have been instrumental in this effort.”
Members of MCC’s chapter of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society met regularly with Red Mountain faculty, builders from Johnson Carlier and architects from SmithGroup, throughout the construction of the building and are contributing needed points for a gold ranking by producing a video to educate others about the LEED process. In addition, the students are putting together a series of building signage highlighting green aspects of the building.
Highlights of the celebration cermony included music performed by Cantalina under the direction of Dr. Glenn Bennett, remarks from Chancellor Rufus Glasper and the presentation of a ceremonial building key to City of Mesa Councilmember Dina Higgins, from Dr. Shouan Pan, president of MCC.
“Our goal with the Saguaro building was to help our community feel ownership,” said Wilson. “We hope they experience a place where they can come to be educated, interact with others and enjoy entertainment.”
The $13.5 million project was supported through funds made available from the MCCCD bond initiative of 2004.
Note- Earlier in the day, Fox 10 weatherman Cory McCloskey provided weather forecasts from the Saguaro building while getting aquainted with the terrarium’s tarantalla and learning to tube a rattlesnake with the help of Red Mountain biology faculty members, Dr. Andy Holycross Krya Perry. http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/azam/corys_corner/corys_corner1_090309
Saguaro Building at MCC Red Mountain