ACOUSTICS AND COMFORT
College dorm rooms are not known as the most acoustically sound spaces. However, the Krienses were interested in acoustic separation in their guest facilities to keep their visitors happy. “It’s always interesting to come up with your acoustic partitions—what materials you use,” Yates notes. “It’s one thing when you’re constructing a new building, but it’s another when you’re retrofitting what basically were wood-framed buildings with 2- by 4-walls. There’s a further challenge when you have partitions in rooms that are a given size, and then you’re getting down to inches on clearances, so having a product that can perform better than just standard drywall is really useful.” The team used special sound-reducing drywall to achieve an STC of 50 to 54 and the required fire ratings.
In addition, the 2-story Outlook classroom building features a 400-person auditorium/lecture hall on the lower level and two larger-than-typical classrooms directly above the auditorium. These larger classrooms were designated for dance classes and other workshops that may disturb a lecture below.
“We had to reinforce the structure and add acoustic separation details to the floor framing to dampen the vibrations and to carry the loads of people up there,” Yates recalls.
The team chose mini-splits to keep retreat goers comfortable in their guest suites. “These smaller dorm rooms were not designed with any interstitial spaces or chases, so we were limited. We didn’t want to really go so far as to tear apart all the floors either,” Yates states. “Given the constraints, we went with a little more utilitarian look and just mounted the units on the wall.”
To create the Craftsman look, various natural materials were specified. Cedar planks act as columns and trusses; redwood was used for a pedestrian bridge; reclaimed wood from Napa can be found; slate roofing was installed; and more than 1,400 tons of Montana river stone with basalt accents appears on the new and retrofitted buildings. Copper gutters and downspouts complement the buildings’ appearance while ensuring longevity.
In some cases, sourcing these natural materials, such as new wood from the Pacific Northwest, proved a challenge in and of itself. “We had team members actually go in the forests up in Northern California, Washington, Oregon to look for trees that would be suitable for use here to create the look we wanted,” Yates says. “Between the natural materials and my interpretation of the Japanese influence on the Greene and Greene architectural style, I think the buildings definitely feel Zen.”
To avoid overloading the structures with the weight of slate roofing, Yates specified a real slate product that requires less overlap, which minimizes the weight on the roof by up to 40 percent.
Cable railing infill had been used on the interior in one the first buildings in the project—an interior dorm—and Yates liked the streamlined appearance of the railings and how they complemented the Craftsman aesthetic. He decided cable railing would work well on the exterior of the buildings also and ultimately specified it for the balconies of Sayanta, the site’s 4-story hotel-like building. The Ipe top rails harmonized with the redwoods and mirrored the site’s organic look and feel.
As each decision was made, the budget for the project increased. “Scott and Joanie were dream clients,” Yates notes. “When they started this, they obviously didn’t plan on the time and the money, but once we got into it, they were great because the more we did, the more they wanted to do better quality. They really wanted 1440 Multiversity to look good and didn’t worry too much about how much it would cost.”
To the Krienses, this project was personal and, while working with them, Yates was touched by the Krienses’ passion, too. “It was just very fulfilling to be part of something like this,” he says. “The 1440 philosophies and life skills they’re teaching, I think it’s a public service and it was just gratifying to be part of it.”
Retrofit Team
ARCHITECT: Yates Architecture
GENERAL CONTRACTOR: South Bay Construction
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT: HeatherHardie Harwood Landscape Architecture
LANDSCAPE CONTRACTOR: DouglasLandscape Construction Inc.
INTERIOR DESIGN: Jansen & Jansen LLC and Artefact Design & Salvage
STRUCTURAL ENGINEER: Universal Structural Engineers LLC
MECHANICAL CONTRACTOR: Trillo Mechanical, (831) 636-7825
ELECTRICAL CONTRACTOR: Howell Electric
PLUMBING CONTRACTOR: Fresno Plumbing & Heating Inc.
FRAMING CONTRACTOR: Ciarra Construction
Materials
ACOUSTIC WALL SHEATHING: QuietRock from PABCO and ToughRock from Georgia-Pacific
ACOUSTIC FLOOR ASSEMBLIES: Gyp-crete 2000 and Acousti-mat from Maxxon
RETROFIT SKYLIGHTS: Velux
SLATE ROOFING: SlateTec
CABLE RAILING: Feeney
FIBER-CEMENT SIDING: HardiPlank Lap Siding and HardiShingle Siding by JamesHardie
FIRE-RATED EXTERIOR SHEATHING: DensGlass Gold from Georgia-Pacific
BATHROOM ACCESSORIES: Bobrick
PLUMBING FIXTURES AND FITTINGS: American Standard, Kohler, and Moen
RETROFIT LIFTS: AmeriGlide
CRAFTSMAN-STYLE EXTERIOR DOORS: Simpson Door Co.
ALUMINUM-CLAD WINDOWS: Loewen
CURTAINWALL: Arcadia
CURTAINWALL GLAZING: Solarban 90 from Vitro Architectural Glass
ACOUSTIC CEILINGS: CALLA from Armstrong Ceiling & Wall Solutions
MINI-SPLITS: Daiken
CUSTOM COPPER GUTTERS AND DOWNSPOUTS: Wildcat Metals
SANCTUARY LIGHT FIXTURES: Architectural Lighting Works
PHOTOS: YATES ARCHITECTURE
1 Comment
Thank you for the information. Super useful!