The site for the new ISTB7 Building, on the southwest corner of University Drive and Rural Road, is the eastern gateway to Arizona State University’s Tempe campus. The site is also the gateway to the campus’s Research Corridor and is at the edge of the campus that faces the new Novus Innovation District. The ISTB7 project is envisioned as an opportunity for public outreach for the entire research community at ASU to showcase how their research is changing the world we share. The project is poised to be a destination for visitors from all over the world.

The site is triangular, bounded by two major arterial streets on the north and east and the Valley Metro light rail (including a light rail stop) that run at an angle on the south side in a northwest/southeast alignment. The building design was defined by the unique site geometry – responding to the opportunities of the historic features, the campus / city circulation nexus, and the work of the researchers inside. The use of the building program to define an exterior courtyard space is a time-tested concept in the Sonoran Desert. The strategy of lifting the building off the site and linking it not only to the research corridor to the south  on the ground but across University Drive to Novus on the second level allows visual and physical access between the campus and the city at this important gateway. Self-shading strategies derived from cactus inform the shell of the building while the courtyard reveals how shade and water have been combined to create a habitable oasis.

PROJECT FACTS

Team | Architekton + Grimshaw

Client | Arizona State University

Scale | 281,000 SF

Cost | $192M

Sustainability | LEED Platinum

Contractor | McCarthy Building Companies

Type | CMAR

AWARDS

• 2024 Mies Crown Hall Americas Prize - Nominee
• 2024 ACEC Engineering Excellence National Recognition Award
• 2023 Sources for Design: Project Design Icon
• 2023 Architectural Precast Association - Educational & Spiritual
• 2023 Architectural Precast Association - GFRC
• 2023 Structural Engineers Association of New York (SEAoNY) New Building Award
• 2023 AZ American Concrete Institute - Overall TOP Project
• 2023 World Architecture Festival - Completed Buildings: Higher Ed and Research Shortlist
• 2022 AIA Arizona Distinguished Architecture Award of Honor
• 2022 AIA Arizona Sustainability Award
• 2022 AIA Arizona Goodwin Award
• 2022 ENR Southwest Best Project - Higher Education/Research
• 2022 ENR Southwest Project of the Year

PUBLICATIONS

Sustainable Stories: The Walton Center for Planetary Health

ENR Southwest Project of the Year: Pulling All Stops to Meet Client Sustainability Goals