2009 America Institute of Architects San Francisco Design Awards

Inside the Cathedral of Christ the Light

"Good design includes both building aesthetics and environmental concerns—it all goes together," says architect Bill Burke, a juror in the Energy + Sustainability category. "We're seeing some outstanding projects that have made a serious commitment to minimizing their environmental impact, and the bar is definitely rising."

The winning projects, which are either located in San Francisco or were designed by local firms, were selected by a jury of national leaders in each of eight categories: architecture, urban design, interior architecture, energy and sustainability, unbuilt design, young architects and associates, special achievement and integrated practice. There are three award levels: Honor, the highest, is followed by Merit and Citation.

Congratulations to all the winners. —The Editors

AIA SF AWARDS FOR ARCHITECTURE
HONOR With glass walls framed by 110-foot ribs of Douglas fir, the Cathedral of Christ the Light, designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, is a soaring space that is lit by sunlight during the day.	HONOR Designed to blend in with the adjacent parkland, the Final(ly) House by Rothschild Schwartz Architects features a universally accessible design for its nonagenarian owners.
HONOR Stanley Saitowitz / Natoma Architects conceived the sanctuary at Congregation Beth Sholom Synagogue as a vessel floating in water; a winding entrance evokes ancient passageways.	MERIT Aidlin Darling Design transformed a historic warehouse at 355 Eleventh Street into a LEED-Gold candidate with a perforated metal facade over the original timber-and-concrete frame.
MERIT Designed by Renzo Piano Building Workshop in collaboration with Stantec Architecture and Arup, the California Academy of Sciences’ landmark living roof undulates over twin 90-foot domes.	MERIT Responding to the tranquil creek-side setting, Bohlin Cywinski Jackson created the Caretaker’s Cottage and Office at a Woodside home with wood cladding and expansive walls of glass.
CITATION Zack / de Vito Architecture’s Laidley Street Residence, the architects’ own home, was sustainably built using prefabricated panels that reduced waste and construction time.	CITATION Skidmore, Owings & Merrill symbolically fused Eastern and Western traditions at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, where a complex of modern structures are interspersed with gardens.
CITATION For the Trinity School Extension, an expansion of a school in Menlo Park, Mark Cavagnero Associates created a new wing with covered terraces where students and teachers can gather.
CITATION A joint venture between Mark Cavagnero Associates and Paulett Taggart Architects, the Sava Pool in Larsen Park combines cast-in-place concrete forms and a dramatic grid of windows.
AIA SF AWARDS FOR URBAN DESIGN
HONOR Skidmore, Owings & Merrill’s Parkmerced Vision Plan calls for nearly 6,000 new residences, numerous open spaces and an organic farm to revitalize the neighborhood.	HONOR Skidmore, Owings & Merrill developed the Foshan Donghuali Master Plan to preserve historic sections of the southern China town while creating a modern central district.
AIA SF AWARDS FOR INTERIOR ARCHITECTURE
MERIT Unit No. 5, a SoMa penthouse by Stanley Saitowitz / Natoma Architects, features black and white halves that define daytime and nighttime spaces, respectively.	CITATION For the de Young Museum’s Hiroshi Sugimoto Exhibition, Mark Cavagnero Associates developed a long freestanding wall to display the photographer’s “Seascape” series.
CITATION Gensler adapted an industrial space into an additional office building for Pixar, designing a “creative factory” that celebrates the exposed brick and lofty spaces of the original structure.	CITATION At the Berkeley offices of Meyer Sound, Marcy Wong Donn Logan Architects created the Pearson Theatre using Douglas fir elements to complement the cutting-edge acoustic technology.
AIA SF AWARDS FOR ENERGY + SUSTAINABILITY
MERIT A collaboration between Siegel & Strain Architects and Goring & Straja Architects, the new Portola Valley Town Center is surrounded by redwoods and was built using reclaimed materials.	MERIT Ratcliff designed the new wing of El Cerrito’s Windrush School for maximum energy efficiency: The LEED-Gold candidate features classrooms that are naturally cooled.
CITATION Pfau Long Architecture transformed the 1906 Levi Strauss Building into the San Francisco Friends School, preserving the all-wood building’s rich history and open, light-filled spaces.	CITATION Aidlin Darling Design gave the warehouse at 355 Eleventh Street a new life with solar power and natural ventilation; the mixed-use commercial building is on track for LEED-Gold certification.
AIA SF AWARDS FOR SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT
Steve Sharafian, Esq., of Long & Levit LLP has been a wise friend and thoughtful counsel to dozens of architecture firms and to AIA San Francisco; his wisdom has helped shape the architecture profession in the city. Howard Ashcraft, Esq., of Hanson Bridgett offered invaluable legal guidance in developing the Integrated Practice process, helping propel this methodology into a national movement. The architects and designers of Slow Food Nation ’08 joined forces to develop exhibits for this landmark event promoting local, sustainable food. More than 20 firms contributed pro-bono services. The San Francisco Public Library Commission and Staff and some of the city’s most creative architects came together in the thoughtful redesign of branch libraries across town. The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition has been a partner in developing more livable spaces for all: Its strong advocacy for bike access on city streets has led many to leave their cars at home and pedal instead.
AIA SF AWARDS FOR UNBUILT DESIGN
HONOR Nest House—a prefab home that is delivered in a shipping container and expands into a two-bedroom dwelling—is Naylor & Chu Architects’ proposed solution to disaster housing.	CITATION To promote sustainable tourism in Valparaíso, Chile, Davids Killory envisages wind turbines and eye-catching Plug-In Pavilions that supply free electricity to the World Heritage Site.
AIA SF AWARD FOR YOUNG ARCHITECTS & ASSOCIATES
YOUNG ARCHITECT Heading up a firm that specializes in community housing and urban design in lower-income neighborhoods, Alex Salazar, AIA, has dedicated himself to creating affordable housing solutions in the Bay Area. YOUNG ASSOCIATE As associate director of the board of AIA San Francisco, Anne Gluch, Associate AIA, has taken an active role in organizing and encouraging young architects to become more active members of their profession.
AIA SF AWARDS FOR INTEGRATED PRACTICE
HONOR For California Pacific Medical Center’s Cathedral Hill Hospital, the team at SmithGroup is using a system modeled on Toyota’s manufacturing process to maximize design and value.