Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi, Tidal Hall Life Science Research Building

Corpus Christi, Texas

Firm

Stantec

Client

Texas A&M University

Area

112,080 sq.ft.

Total Cost

$45,700,000

Completion Date

08/2018

Luis Ayala

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Design Team
Stantec (Architect): Steve Parker (Senior Project Manager); Tracy Eich (Senior Design Architect); Mickey Walsh (Project Architect);
Fulton Coastcon Construction (General Contractor); JQ Infrastructure (Structural); Shah Smith & Associates (MEP); Vermeulens (Cost Estimator)

Tidal Hall Life Sciences Research Building was designed to serve the academic needs of the Texas A&M University Corpus Christi’s Department of Life Sciences. The three-story facility faces the Corpus Christi Bay, visually connecting the laboratories with their research source.

But the bay also is in a direct hurricane path, which has affected the site on several occasions with devastating consequences. The design responds to this problem by situating lab spaces at the center and moving circulation to the perimeter, creating layers that act as protective shields.

The building is arranged vertically; all teaching labs are on the south end, and all research labs are on the north end of an east-west primary corridor. This enables each of the three floors to house 12 open research modules, with six on either side of a shared support zone.

The aesthetics are strongly influenced by the island-based location. Light brick, evoking the sandy color of the beach, and a blue glass pattern, reflecting the ocean’s polychromatic chart, fuse together in a building that programmatically finds its inspiration in the sea.