Prince George’s Community College - High Tech Center

Heery provided full architectural and engineering services for Prince George’s Community College’s new 81,742 SF High Technology Center (HTC).  Dubbed by the college president as the “Future Gateway to the Campus”, the HTC was planned to become a technology magnet for the college and for Prince George’s County.  The new building houses laboratories, classrooms, offices, lecture halls, storage and work rooms and responds to the college’s vision to use technology facilities to recruit students, retrain the workforce and promote new programs.

Through careful massing and material selection, Heery’s designers created a forward-looking, signature structure that is sympathetic to the existing vocabulary of the campus, mostly 1970’s rectilinear brick buildings.  Adaptability was another key component of the design, as was incorporating raised floor systems to accommodate technological change.

While community colleges are sometimes portrayed as commuter learning centers lacking a vibrant student life, the HTC project incorporates several features to facilitate student interaction and camaraderie.  Despite a tight program, the Heery design team was able to create multiple informal meeting spaces throughout the building.  The main entrance plaza is flanked by low walls inviting informal student meetings.  Inside are open wireless computer labs and a café with roof terrace - all with a visual connection to the center of campus.  Open niches and alcoves define areas conducive to student/faculty interaction and study.  Finally, a three-story atrium allows natural light to enliven the building and provides a visual link between multiple floors.