On a beautiful day in September the 18th Annual AIA Golf Tournament, which benefits the Valencia Community College Foundation, was held at ChampionsGate Golf Club, Over 150+ golfers participated and $15,000 was raised for scholarships at the college. Over the past five (6) years, more than $100,000 has been raised through the AIA Golf Tournament to benefit Valencia students.
 
Prizes were awarded to the following persons: Robert Mandarine, Sig Bo, Jeremy Johnson and Jim Zullo, (First Place Winners); Bob Gibson, Rex Weeks, Chris Quarles and Johnny Bowers,(Second Place Winners); Jim Caron, Bob Caron, Scott Harter and Jeff Rinks (Third Place Winners). Longest Drive winners were Gary Burton (Men, Hole #8) and Carole Hingtgen (Women, Hole# 11). Closest to the Pin prizes went to Jeremy Johnson (Hole 17, International); Congratulations to all of our winners!
 
AIA Orlando wishes to thank Tournament Sponsors Valencia Foundation & National Graphic Imaging; Corporate Sponsors ABC Fine Wine and Spirits &
McCree, Inc.; and Beverage Cart Sponsors Haworth Inc.&Clancy and Theys Construction Co. Tee Sponsors; Greens Sponsors; and Friends of AIA.

Also, we would like to thank the prize sponsors for all of their donations to the event. A tournament of this magnitude would not have been possible without the generous support of these fine companies. The AIA sincerely thanks you.

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Orlando City Hall was the site of the November 1, 2007 meeting featuring Mr. Thomas Chalmon, Executive Director of the Downtown Development Board (DDB); Ms. Lelia Allen, Director of the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA); and Mr. Dean Yates, Assoc. AIA, Statewide IDP Coordinator, each of whom spoke to chapter members regarding the status of their respective programs.  The meeting was hosted by Mr. Richard Krent, AIA, City Architect of the City of Orlando, and emceed by AIA Orlando President-Elect Carl Shea, AIA. It was apparent from the discussions that significant changes are occurring in our region and in various aspects of our profession, many of which will affect each of us directly in our respective practices.

DDB ED Thomas Chalmon comes to Orlando by way of Albany, GA, where he worked with a number of architects, including Antoine Predock. Mr. Chalmon described the boundaries of the DDB as roughly 1641 acres of land anchored at the north by Florida Hospital and at the south by the Orlando Medical Center. He indicated that the Mayor of Orlando has established a number of priorities to improve the city through innovation and responsible growth. Among those programs is the recently-passed Three Venues plan, a 20-year downtown master plan, a short-term strategic plan for the downtown area, and creation of the Parramore Task Force to assist in the restoration of the area west of I-4 to its former condition as an attractive, safe, middle-class working neighborhood.

Mr. Chalmon discussed a large number of downtown commercial and residential projects in various stages from design review to issuance of Certificates of Occupancy.  He mentioned that, while a small number of projects are on hold due to the current state of the market, most are moving forward and several will be completed, as well as others started, in the near future.  Passage of the Three Venues plan will result in a new arena for the Magic, and the city will soon issue a development RFP for the current Amway Arena site and its immediate surroundings.

CRA Director Lelia Allen is a native of Orlando and has worked for the CRA for 17 years. Ms. Allen stated that, for the past several years, median income has remained relatively static while the median sale price of a home in the Orlando area has climbed from roughly $50,000 to $275,000, which represents an increase of 450%.  Consequently, many people have been priced out of the housing market. At the same time, she commented, the city has also seen a rapid conversion of apartments to condominiums, resulting in a low inventory of rental units at the present time. In response to those events, the city has made creation of attainable housing a priority, where “attainable” is defined as households whose income is anywhere from 50 to 150% of area median income. In order to achieve the goal of creating more attainable housing, the CRA is helping to enhance funding to create housing in the area, encouraging employer assistance in the program, and establishing new CRA programs to include additional workforce housing.     

State IDP Coordinator Dean Yates indicated that, while the number of architectural graduates in the state is up, the number of new registrants is down, suggesting shortages of licensed architects in the future if this trend continues. Mr. Yates stressed the importance of early IDP registration for new graduates in order to avoid late registration penalties, as well as diligent documentation of intern work experience in order to qualify interns to sit for the architectural registration exam at the earliest possible point in time. An IDP unit of experience is eight hours, with 700 units required for architectural registration. Candidates are eligible to sit for the professional exam after acquiring 235 units, and it is possible to substitute supplemental education for unit requirements. 

In October, several AIA and engineering firms teamed up for this year’s Canstruction at Fashion Square Mall.  Canstruction is an annual design/build competition to create sculptures built entirely of canned and packaged foods that are ultimately donated to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida. Each sculpture uses approximately 1000 to 2000 food items, and on average, it takes 150 - 250 hours to design, organize, set up, and tear down an entry.  This is a great charitable effort, and a lot of fun for those involved.

By: Bob Miller, FAIA

On August 30, 2007 the AIA Orlando hosted a successful fund raising breakfast for State Representative Dean Cannon, District 35. The event was a tremendous success with more than 29 AIA members in attendance at the Citrus Club in downtown Orlando. The total amount raised in support of candidate Dean Cannon was $3,200.

Dean Cannon is serving a second term representing District 35. Mr. Cannon is an attorney from Winter Park and is currently serving as Chair for the Economic Expansion & Infrastructure Council, Legislative Budget Commission, Policy & Budget Council and Rules & Calendar Council for the State of Florida.

According to Todd Steibly, Chris Hansen, (AIA Florida) & Gray Robinson’s office in Tallahassee the breakfast was a “great success”. The AIA Florida referred to AIA Orlando as “the shining star” and commented that most other chapters averaged 5-6 people in attendance.

A special thank you to everyone who attended and to those that made this event possible:

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By Tom F. Griffin, AIA LEED-AP

On October 16, A Gift For Teaching invited AIA Orlando Board members to a luncheon to tour their well-designed and vibrant facility and meet their gracious and informative staff.  They are located at 6501 Magic Way, Building 400C, near John Young and Oak Ridge roads in the Orange County Public Schools complex.

The staff explained that almost half of the students in Central Florida cannot afford lunch, much less school supplies.  In most cases, the teachers spend between $500 - $1000 of their own money to buy supplies for their students and classrooms.

A Gift For Teaching helps bridge the gap by transferring, at no cost, surplus supplies and merchandise from local businesses and the community into the hands of over 7000 teachers for their 110,000 students in high-need schools in Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties.  Schools with 60% or more of their students on free or reduced lunch programs can send all of their teachers to shop once a month.  Other schools can send one representative each week, and teachers can also volunteer at the Free Store to earn a shopping visit.

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From 1998 through this year, A Gift For Teaching has distributed a value of $30 million in surplus supplies to our area’s teachers.  This includes over 3 million pencils, 600,000 books, and almost 100,000 teacher visits to the store.  An average value of $400 in supplies is distributed during each teacher’s shopping visit.  Wish List items from architects and other businesses include any type of excess office supplies that classrooms could use, children’s books, art supplies, toys and games for kid’s rewards, and even musical instruments.  They also have many volunteer opportunities available.

This year, through Larry Trobough’s able leadership of the Design Party, excess funds from the Party were used to purchase over 200 small backpacks with the AIA Orlando logo.  These backpacks were presented to A Gift For Teaching at the luncheon / tour, and are a very popular item among the younger kids.

Jack Bloodgood (Click to enlarge)

Dome has been restored to Wright's original design

Florida Southern College announced the Frank Lloyd Wright Water Dome World Premiere on October 25 in front of the Roux Library on the FSC campus. The Discovery Channel was on campus to film the event.

“We are thrilled to be able to make available to a worldwide audience for the first time this unique Frank Lloyd Wright design,” said Florida Southern College President Anne B. Kerr. “The worldwide community owes a debt of gratitude to the State of Florida Division of Historical Resources and the Clayton Hollis Family for their generous gifts to make this restoration dream a reality.”

The Water Dome has been under construction to restore it to the original Wright design, completed in 1948. In its original form, the Water Dome was a large circular pool ringed with jets to create a dome of water encasing the pool, but it never functioned as Wright envisioned. With the construction of the new E. T. Roux Library in 1968, the single pool was divided into three smaller ponds with central fountain heads surrounded by a large concrete plaza. 

The restoration incorporates new fountain technology that will enable Wright’s vision of a 45-foot-tall dome of water to be realized. The Water Dome will dominate the core of the Florida Southern College west campus as Wright planned. The project has been overseen by preservation architect Jeff Baker of Mesick-Cohen-Wilson-Baker Architects, LLP, of Albany, N.Y., a firm that specializes in historic restoration.

Founded in 1883, Florida Southern College is a private, comprehensive United Methodist-affiliated college with a liberal arts core. Located on scenic Lake Hollingsworth, Florida Southern is home to the world’s largest single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture.

Over the past several months the Orlando Young Architects Chapter has been reaching out into the community through a burgeoning relationship with the Maitland Arts Center, maintaining our involvement with Habitat for Humanity and the Art and Architecture Program, and going on various tours and conferences.

Since late spring a small group of YAFers began the third installment of the Art and Architecture house.  Working through various plans, the group selected a plan to move forward with and began the process of putting together construction documents for the 1500 s.f. home.  The plan works off of two programmatic bars of public and private spaces that are integrated through a furniture/wall element that carries from landscape to interior.  It is our hope to see this project through and into construction as we head into 2008.

A jewel within Central Florida, the Maitland Arts Center, contacted our group in June asking for our assistance as they began the process of documenting the historic nature of the Research Studio designed by Andre Smith.  Our group was charged with providing sketches, photographs, and written descriptions of each element within the arts center.  One steamy July day a group of 8 YAFers worked with other volunteers, Art Center Board Members and Artists in producing many pages of sketches and hundred of photographs.  It is the hope of the Art Center to use these documents both in their quest for National Landmark status but also a means of prioritizing preservation repairs at the center. 

In November our group was treated to a night time tour of the Center given by Program Director Gloria Capozzi, Rick Bowser, and Board Member Bonnie Bernardo, and the following week we were invited guest to hear a presentation on the Historic American Landscape and Building Survey by its Director, Mr. Paul Dolinsky.  October included a tour of the Deland Garden District with urban designer Michael Arth, who recently released the documentary “New Urban Cowboy.”   Mr. Arth’s documentary presents the story of how he and his family arrived from Santa Barbara, California in 2000 and transformed one of the most drug ridden areas in Central Florida into the model of “New Pedestrianism.”

Later in the month, seven of our members attended the third annual Emerging Professionals Conference in Sarasota.  Several of our members presented their ideas at this year’s design competition for Light Rail in Sarasota, which along with the Central Florida Commuter Rail, had been the discussion item of our previous Chapter meeting.  All of those in attendance once again found this conference to be a very rewarding and energizing experience.

Having just heard from academics from Georgia Tech, University of Michigan, and Sci-Arc at the Emerging Professionals Conference, upon our return, Valencia Community College held its first architecture lecture.  It was quite a success in turnout as Cube Research and Design presented its works and aspirations.

Heading into 2008 it is our hope to take these experiences to local high schools that are looking to us to provide guidance to the next generation of students. As always, you are welcome to join the YAF the first Wednesday of the month.

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AIA Orlando was recognized on Friday, October 26, 2007 at the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida Board Meeting. The presentation was for the charrette process and financial contributions from the AIA Orlando Chapter.

The purpose of this charrette was to apply the talents of AIA Orlando’s membership to study the physical and functional needs for a new or refurbished facility for the Coalition for the Homeless within downtown Orlando.  The effort specifically addressed challenges and obstacles that the Coalition faces as it attempts to expand its services to the homeless population within the transitioning urban fabric of downtown Orlando.

The charrette team worked with the Coalition and the City of Orlando to try to eliminate negative implications stemming from elements such as the Men’s Pavilion, and emphasize positive elements associated with programs serving community needs such as affordable housing, single room occupancy units, educational and fitness facilities, and food services. 

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The AIA Orlando Chapter has also donated $2000 over the past two years to the Coalition and the AIA Board of Directors along with the Finance Committee is working to implement a $1000 contribution annually in the budget.

Special thanks to all of the AIA members who participated in the charrette effort, including:  Ruffin Rhodes, AIA; Tommy Hagood, AIA; John Ehrig, FAIA; Nathan Butler, AIA; Richard Krent, AIA; Bill Yeaple, AIA; Don Grannan, AIA; Tony Aguerverre, AIA; Dave van Loon, Assoc. AIA; Tim Lemons, AIA, Chris Dunlop, AIA, and numerous others.

ORLANDO, FL -- The Orlando office of VOA Associates Incorporated, architecture, planning and interior design, announced that the firm is working on two projects at Jackson Barracks, New Orleans, LA: a new, 53,338-square foot 61st Troop Command Readiness Center, and a new, 5,568-square-foot Fitness Center. VOA was commissioned to serve as Designer of Record for the design-build projects, providing full architectural design services in partnership with Walton Construction, of Harahan, LA.  Both facilities are currently under construction and slated for completion by October, 2008.

Readiness Center (Click to enlarge)

According to VOA Partner, Ted G. Fery, AIA, the two-story, 250-person Readiness Center will serve the multiple functions of administrative, storage, training and assembly activities of the 61st Troop Command. “The building is sited at the “Historic” Jackson Barracks and is aligned with its “sister” facility, the 141st  Field Artillery Battalion, sharing service areas and a paved plaza for formal drills, loading and deployment of military vehicles and equipment,” Fery states. “Through careful manipulation of brick materials combined with cast stone accents, the design exhibits respect for the historical context while relating to human scale.” Roof overhangs, balconies, porticoes and vestibules provide relief from the elements as well as tie the large facility to the sub-tropical context and local architectural tradition. The training, classroom and storage facility includes storage and support services on the ground level and IT/Telecommunications rooms and a secure weapons vault on the second floor as well as space for support functions such as an assembly hall, recruitment office, break rooms and primary mechanical room.

Fitness Center (Click to enlarge)

The new, single-story, 5,568 Fitness Center, which will serve as a campus wide fitness facility for the Jackson Barracks campus, features a similar design style as the TC Readiness Center, utilizing brick and cast stone accents that recall the historic architecture on the site. The main entry occurs within a covered portico directly facing the parade field to the west of the work-out space, with service areas, shower and locker rooms, offices and mechanical spaces all situated along the south end of the workout space.

Jack Bloodgood (Click to enlarge)

On Thursday, October 11, BSB Design founder Jack Bloodgood was officially inducted into the 3rd annual William S. Marvin Hall of Fame for Design Excellence. The honor was presented during the Builder's Choice Awards dinner in Washington, D.C. Bloodgood started BSB Design (formerly Bloodgood Sharp Buster Architects and Planners, Inc.) in 1966 in Des Moines, IA, and since then, the firm has expanded to 15 locations nationwide and has designed work in all 50 states and internationally.

Named after the honorary chairman of Marvin Windows and Doors, the William S. Marvin Hall of Fame Award, sponsored by Builder magazine, recognizes building professionals who have consistently demonstrated leadership and outstanding achievement in, and contribution toward, the field of residential design. Joining Bloodgood as 2007 inductees are Carson Looney of Looney Ricks Kiss and Chris Stuhmer of Christopher Homes. 

Praised for his ability to bring design sensibility to mainstream housing, Bloodgood revolutionized residential architecture by working hand in hand with builder clients to create better, more livable homes and communities. “I learned to look at housing from the point of view of the consumer. We are very interested in what the builder can sell and how he can make it appealing to the customer,” said Bloodgood. With this mentality, he brought home design to the masses, helping even average American homeowners benefit from architectural expertise. He built a legacy firm in BSB Design, where trademark client service and design innovations are still at work today.

Current employees embrace Bloodgood’s original ideals, and the firm has garnered a reputation as one of the best places to work in the country. “At BSB Design, we try to recognize what everyone can do best and what makes them happy. Everyone is allowed to do their own thing as best they can and grow into the position that becomes available to them,” said Bloodgood.

Today, Bloodgood is effectively retired from BSB Design, although he still acts as a design consultant on various projects around the country. He resides in Naples, FL, and Des Moines, IA, with his wife, Jeanne.

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Construction has been completed on Graceville Correctional Facility, which was designed locally by SchenkelShultz Architecture. The firm was hired by The GEO Group, who will privately operate the 307,120 square-foot correctional facility for the State of Florida.

Located in Jackson County, Graceville Correctional Facility’s construction costs totaled under $70 million. The medium/close security complex contains 638 cells and 1,500 beds.  The facility’s X-Wing structure was designed to optimize site utilization and to emphasize security and operational efficiency.  Administrative features include offices and a conference room as well as an administrative building control room that is equipped with state-of-the-art touch-screen door control technologies, which will monitor and manage the facility from one central point.

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Additional features include inmate dormitory housing with dayrooms, an intake and receiving area, medical and dental services, group therapy and visitation rooms, gymnasiums and an industry building, as well as support spaces such as a full-service kitchen and laundry rooms.

SchenkelShultz Architecture Designing 10 Green Projects

Businesses and organizations throughout Florida and across the country have recognized the value and importance of greenbuilding. Currently, SchenkelShultz Architecture has 10 projects in design in Florida and other parts of the country that will be applying for certification as green buildings.

“Organizations are now looking at their facilities as opportunities to have a positive impact on quality of life in the community,” says J. Thomas Chandler, President and COO of SchenkelShultz. “Since our design of Florida’s first green building in 2000, we have been committed to designing buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable, and healthy places to live and work – not just places we occupy.”

Over the next two to three years, SchenkelShultz will be designing several greenbuilding projects in the education, aviation, and commercial sectors. These projects will be applying for certification from the United States Green Building Council (USGBC):

• McMahan Hall at Stetson University
• Hand Art Center at Stetson University
• The Environmental Learning Center at Stetson University
• Career Resources Center at UCF
• North County Middle School
• Edison College Child Care Center
• Edison College/UF College of Dentistry Naples Dental Clinic
• Hernando High School EEE
• Signature Flight Support Executive Terminal, San Francisco
• RTI Office Building in Research Triangle Park, Raleigh, NC

To ensure these projects achieve the standard of high performance required to be certified green buildings, SchenkelShultz embraced the LEED® rating system established by the USGBC. LEED®, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction, and operation of high performance green buildings.

SchenkelShultz has gone a step further. While not all K-12 schools designed by the firm are certified, they all feature a variety of greenbuilding techniques and principles. SchenkelShultz is applying the core principles of the LEED® rating system as a guide in designing all of their K-12 school projects, without the schools having to incur additional costs. 

As a result, schools throughout Florida designed by SchenkelShultz are reaping the benefits of going green. They are seeing lower operational costs, reductions in water pollution, and improved environmental quality. The intent is to provide students a healthy, comfortable and productive learning environment that will ultimately increase school quality and competitiveness.

SchenkelShultz has pioneered greenbuilding in Florida. The state’s first green building was designed by SchenkelShultz for the College of Business Administration at Stetson University. Most recently, the firm designed South Florida’s first LEED® Gold Certified project in the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing at Florida Atlantic University, which was certified in September 2007.

ABC Fine Wine & Spirits has awarded R.D. Michaels 24 project throughout Florida over the past decade.  Currently, four ABC stores are being constructed simultaneously.  In the final stages of construction are two stores located in Jacksonville and Ocoee; both of which were built directly next to existing stores that are scheduled to be demolished once the new stores are completed in October of this year.  In September, R.D. Michaels received contracts and began construction on their 23rd and 24th stores for two new ABC projects located in Estero and Greenacres, Florida.  The typical ABC store is approximately 10,000 square feet and range in size from $1 to $2 million.

Upscale Italian cuisine with a continental flair in a “Nuovo Italiano” setting dramatized by floating textile panels, lighted globes and artistic wine displays, are some of the key ingredients that characterize Lago, a chic waterfront restaurant now under construction in Orlando’s Baldwin Park.

Created by BSB Design, which maintains Florida regional offices in Orlando, Jacksonville and Tampa, the 8,400-square-foot restaurant will offer expansive views of Lake Baldwin through 14-foot-tall Palladian windows draped in long, flowing fabric panels, and feature an 18-foot open and exposed ceiling softened by floating textile panels and lighted globes.

“Lago will offer a sensual Italian dining experience unlike any other in Orlando,” said architect Rodney Cattoor, AIA, director of BSB Design’s commercial division whose many restaurant design credits include Seasons 52, Bahama Breeze, Smokey Bones BBQ, and Stonewood Grill & Tavern. 

“The visual experience created by the Nuovo Italiano design with its clean lines and natural materials is intended to heighten the overall dining experience,” Cattoor explained. 

Contributing to that experience are a trio of artistic wine displays that will grace the restaurant’s interior including a 125-seat main dining room, a 32-seat banquet dining room, and a 12-seat VIP dining room with audio-visual capability that opens to a Milanese-style piazza.

Diners also will have an unobstructed view of the restaurant’s custom-designed European kitchen with wood-burning pizza oven, and can choose to “have a ringside seat” at the kitchen’s serpentine-shaped, concrete dining bar, or relax a little farther back in one of four elevated, circular booths.      

Walls, lighting and millwork work together through sculpted forms to “envelope diners” who may be enjoying a power lunch, a twilight dinner or nightcap in the lounge which features a wood and concrete teardrop-shaped bar, elevated baby grand piano, and several intimate group seating arrangements.

In addition to 247 indoor seats, Lago also offers “aria fresca” patio dining for 44 patrons just outside the main dining room where diners will enjoy views of the lake and village center boardwalk in this award-winning and nationally-recognized Traditional Neighborhood Development (TND) on Orlando’s east side.

Lago is expected to open in summer 2008.

The Sensible Solution for Townhouse Fire and Sound Protection
By Michael Gardner

Worker attaching aluminum L-clip to steel framing on area separation wall (Click to enlarge)

Gypsum board townhouse separation walls – also known as area separation walls, fire walls, or party walls – are perhaps the most cost-effective and time-efficient systems available for providing fire protection and sound attenuation in multi-family construction.  Moreover, they provide these benefits while responding directly to contemporary building code requirements calling for individual townhouse units and similar multi-family dwellings to be separated by fire-rated construction.  Gypsum board townhouse separation walls can be installed in almost any weather condition and are typically used in townhouse, apartment, and condominium construction. They are also ideal for light commercial construction, providing fire protection and sound attenuation between commercial workspaces in strip malls.
 
Code Compliance
The model building codes require all area separation walls to meet the following design criteria:

• They must be continuous from the foundation to the underside of protected roof sheathing or continue through the roof to form a parapet, and;
• They must allow for the collapse of the construction on the side of the wall exposed to fire while remaining intact to protect the structure on its opposite side.

Every model building code permits the use of gypsum area separation wall systems where fire resistance and sound attenuation are required.
 
System Types
Gypsum board townhouse separation wall systems are generally available in cavity-type or solid systems. Cavity-type systems are typically constructed using components such as gypsum liner panels and methods found in steel stud partitions or shaft wall construction normally used to protect stairwells and elevator shafts.

Solid gypsum board area separation walls use three basic components:

• One-inch thick type X gypsum board liner panels that are 2-feet wide and either 8-, 10-, 12- or 14-feet long.
• Metal framing members, consisting of 2-inch-wide H-studs and U-shaped track.
• "Break away" L-shape aluminum clips that soften at relatively low temperatures.

The area separation wall is attached to the adjacent building’s structural framework using L-shaped aluminum clips, which are fastened to the area separation wall’s steel H studs and the structure of the townhouse. The clips connect each H stud on both sides with the adjacent floors or roof/ceiling intersections to keep the area separation wall in place between the two structures.

The aluminum L clips are manufactured to soften at about 1100 degrees F. Consequently, when they’re exposed to the heat of a fire on one side of the area separation wall, they break away between the steel and the wood frameworks and allow the burning structure to fall away while leaving the area separation wall in place. Because the gypsum board panels prevent the heat on the “fire side” from reaching the opposite side, the aluminum clips supporting the wall on the non-burning side remain intact and prevent the fire from spreading.

Aluminum clips used to connect gypsum area separation walls to adjacent buildings must be specified in the tested design to ensure that they perform properly during a fire.  Clips must be fastened and installed in conjunction with system directions. In addition to defining fire-resistance requirements, the model building codes typically require walls separating townhouse units to maintain a minimum Sound Transmission Class (STC) rating of 45 to 50 to ensure that proper sound attenuation occurs between individual units. 

Michael Gardner is the Executive Director of the Gypsum Association of
Washington, D.C.

HuntonBrady Architects (www.huntonbrady.com), an Orlando based architecture, planning and interior design firm, has completed design of the Seminole Community College (SCC) Heathrow Technology Center, a new hub for technology workforce development and economic development throughout Central Florida.

A collaborative space for college and community, SCC’s Heathrow Center is located on a 6-acre site in western Seminole County along the I-4 corridor in the Colonial Center Business Park on AAA Boulevard.  Key tenants include the Seminole County Regional Chamber of Commerce, Florida High Tech Corridor Council, Seminole County Government/Economic Development, SCC Small Business Development and Leadership Seminole. The Center also will provide a focal point and expanded space for SCC's growing Construction/Architecture and Digital Media programs at the HuntonBrady Architects Digital Design Lab.

Phase one of construction features a 3-story, 65,000 square feet building that houses economic development facilities, multiple learning suites, a public suite, support services and building services. The Information Commons, a multi-story atrium space, is a gathering hub of building activities and circulation and is designed to foster collaboration between faculty, staff, students and community partners.