Florida State University, Azalea Residence Hall Featuring 1851
Tallahassee, Florida
Design team:
Ricca Design Studios
Florida State University was once the Florida State College for Women until, in 1947, it began converting to a coed university. The original structures on Azalea Hall’s site played a significant role in that transition. The seven-story Deviney and Dorman residence halls were built in the 1950s for male students. Soon after, they were converted to women-only housing, and not long after that, housed both men and women. Combined, the original halls provided 524 beds with a communal restroom on each floor.
Because of a consistently high demand for on-campus housing, the university replaced these structures with a two-building complex: Azalea Hall and Magnolia Hall. Azalea Hall houses 435 beds; together, Azalea and Magnolia provide 917 beds.
The Office of Business Services, Seminole Dining and University Housing wanted to honor FSU’s campus with the names of the two new residence halls and food services facilities. The name Magnolia Hall not only reflects the beautiful foliage around campus, but also pays tribute to another Magnolia Hall that once stood on campus near this location. The second structure was named Azalea Hall.
Azalea Hall also houses a ground-floor dining venue named 1851. The year-based name was chosen to demonstrate school pride, provide instant historical credibility, create easy recognition and reference for the campus community, and establish the name as unique in the city of Tallahassee.
In the past few years, Florida State has found itself in an increasingly urban environment. Our students and faculty no longer are drawn to the standard cafeteria or food court model. Therefore, the university is committed to investigating innovative approaches to engage customers, and pursued an “urban eatery/bistro” concept. The vision is to offer a food service facility that will operate around the clock and be a magnet for fellowship, nourishment and entertainment. The facility was designed to embrace some anchor concepts and philosophies:
• An urban ”store front” facade
• A comfortable, inviting, eat-and-learn venue
• High-volume traffic capacity
• High-energy night and weekend operations
• Outdoor seating
• Security, noise control, and privacy for residents
1851 offers 24,065 square feet of dining facilities and includes seating for up to 453. The offerings include Noles’ Homecoming (comfort food), Passport (International/healthful options), JStreet Grille (American grill), The Canteen (convenience store/coffee), and Tuscan Eatery (Tuscan/hearth oven).
Additional Information
Associated Firm
The Collaborative
Capacity
435
Cost per Sq Ft
$337.00
Featured in
2017 Architectural Portfolio
Product suppliers specified
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