Cochise College, Benson Center

Benson, Arizona

Firm

Durrant

Client

Cochise College

Area

12,500 sq.ft.

Total Cost

$1,860,000

Completion Date

09/2000

This project, which showcases the vista to the north, includes a media center, distance-learning classrooms, offices and parking for 150 automobiles.
The classrooms were organized for maximum flexibility. The rooms can be opened up completely to create a large meeting area, or they can be partitioned into smaller spaces. The college makes the facility available after hours to local community groups for meetings, conferences, open houses and receptions.
The project incorporates a large palette of materials (colored concrete,CMU, painted metal, rusted steel, corrugated metal, aluminum and stone) to achieve rhythms, patterns, textures and colors that relate to the surrounding desert environment and to the human scale.
Future phases of the campus will total 100,000 square feet of buildings with parking for an additional 500 automobiles.