Ohlone Community College has operated since 1965, serv­ing the economically diverse populations of students in Newark, Fremont, and Union City. As part of a Public-Pri­vate Partnership, the college will construct 500+ beds of student housing in close proximity to the Newark campus. This project will be the first student housing provided by the District and will serve a critical need for the campus. Slated to break ground in 2024, the partnership between Ohlone Community College District and Gilbane Devel­opment, a housing developer, will leverage funding from California’s Senate Bill 169, which offers grants for the construction of student housing in its efforts to provide affordable, low-cost housing options for students enrolled in public post-secondary education. The design of the project is a collaboration between Mogavero Architects and our partners, PBK Architects. Consistent with Mogavero’s design philosophy, the project will emphasize ascending levels of community within a student housing project, and the importance of stimulat­ing connections and relationships amongst residents in various scenarios. The project’s objective is to provide a quality, affordable housing program containing approximately 200 units for a total of 532 beds that are a mix of single students’ resi­dence hall units and apartment-style units at the Newark Center. The unit mix will consist of studios, 1-, 2-, 3-, & 4-bedroom suites on the 250,000 square foot site. The residence hall units will also include additional spaces for shared amenities, including a full kitchen, laundry, shared living areas and interior and exterior community spaces. In addition to the housing program the develop­ment will include a childcare center, student outreach cen­ter for student counseling, a food pantry, and a connection to the existing city recreation center.

The Shasta Hall Student Housing project, Mogavero Architects’ fifth housing project for UC Davis, involves the design of a replacement building for a Emerson Hall, which was constructed in 1967 by a private party, and later purchased by the University. The initial investigation involved a significant programming exercise to develop a new housing prototype for UC Davis, and an analysis comparing renovation to a demo and new build. The project is intended to serve both first time freshmen and returning students. Other student residences in the Cuarto Residential District are based on a suite-style model, differing from the more recent “cluster” style housing on campus. The program led to a unit type that is in the middle of the spectrum between suites and traditional dorm style units, providing more privacy, while emphasizing the social interaction common to the traditional dorms. The building massing recognizes the desired lines from the project toward the “food path” to the Dining Commons and the center of the Campus (SE) and the connection to the Cuarto Quad (NW). The large transparent lounge makes a connection to the Cuarto Quad and serves as architectural eyes, and a clear gateway marking the main entry to the project. High activity rooms at the entries emphasize the dynamic quality of entry to the courtyard. The building block of the residential floor plans is a unit of two double rooms sharing a compartmentalized bathroom. It is possible to have the bedroom connected to the hall via the hold-open entry door. Several lounges open to the hall act as “living rooms” to encourage social interaction with spaces for studying, lounging and socializing. The architectural expression is based on a strong distinction between the protective exterior, shielding for privacy and sun protection, and the more welcoming nature of the interior of the courtyard. The transparency of ground floor common spaces and the stacks of multiple lounges form transparent shifting volumes, untethered from the geometric ordered restrictions of the stacked bedroom units. In September of 2021, the new Shasta Hall opened its doors to receive 1,000 freshman students for the Fall quarter. The project was completed ahead of the initially-proposed schedule, with completion occurring nearly one year early.  

The Yosemite Hall Student Housing project is Mogavero Architects’ fourth housing project for UC Davis. It is the first of two phases of buildings that replaces two 50-year old residence halls in the Cuarto neighborhood, located just a few blocks northeast of the UC Campus. Replacing the former Webster Hall, the new building blends suites & dorm-style units to create more privacy while still maintaining ample resident social spaces. The initial investigation involved a significant programming exercise to develop a new housing prototype for UC Davis, and an analysis comparing renovation to a demo and new build.   The project is intended to serve both first-time freshmen and returning students. Other student residences in the Cuarto Residential District are based on a suite-style model, differing from the more recent “cluster” housing on campus. The program led to a unit type that is in the middle of the spectrum between suites and traditional dorm style units, providing more privacy, while emphasizing the social interaction common to the traditional dorms. Yosemite, replacing the former Webster Hall, is a 373-bed student housing project that is comprised of 7 floor communities in a single 4-story building. The building massing recognizes the desire lines from the project toward the “food path” to the Dining Commons and the connection to the Cuarto Quad to the northwest. The path to the center of campus (SE) is past the bike parking, protected under floors above and under the watchful architectural eyes of the laundry room. High activity rooms at the entries emphasize the dynamic quality of entry to the courtyard. The building block of the residential floor plans is a unit of two double rooms sharing a compartmentalized bathroom. It is possible to have the bedroom connected to the hall via the hold-open entry door. Five lounges open to the hall act as “living rooms” to encourage human interaction with spaces for studying, lounging and socializing. The transparency of ground floor common spaces and the stacks of multiple lounges form transparent shifting volumes, untethered from the geometric ordered restrictions of the stacked bedroom units. These shifting crystals emphasize the relative importance of the common spaces and give a dynamic life to the courtyard.