DESIGNS OF EXCELLENCE

About the incubator, he says: "Although this building was constructed with inexpensive warehouse steel components, it doesn't follow the conventional design of a shoebox, which often happens with a rectangular manufacturing building. This one speaks to you in a way that good architecture speaks, because it relates directly to its context-airport and efficient business space for small emerging businesses that need a place to grow and flourish."

Edison Community College/Charlotte County

An old schoolhouse provides inspiration.

Chuck Schmidt of Barany, Schmidt, Summers and Weaver blended the rustic appeal of an early Florida one-room schoolhouse as well as the new Punta Gorda courthouse and Charlotte High School into his design for the new Edison Community College in Charlotte County. The campus consists of seven buildings representing varied functions such as laboratories, classrooms, media center and a physical education and wellness center. But the separate structures are effectively unified by spatial organization and materials that Schmidt used, such as brick for the buildings and copper roofing. A covered walking area provides a deeper visual connection and offers protection during the rainy season of Southwest Florida. The windows in the buildings open to provide cross ventilation when air conditioning isn't needed.

A large oval village green south of the auditorium offers exterior staging for concerts and campus social events. The handsome four-legged brick and copper bell tower at the main intersection of several pathways is the reference point for the complex. It's also the favored photo op for graduates and their families. The campus currently serves 3,500. Schmidt's architectural contribution was Phase I for this evolving educational compound.

Ron White, the college's district director of facilities planning and management, describes the Charlotte complex as "the crown jewel of our three campuses. It highlights our emphasis on providing the best possible learning environment for our students and it is a place the community embraces with pride. The campus has become a focal point for the entire community." The project was named Outstanding College/University New Project in Florida in 200? by the Florida Educational Planners Association. And it was ordained Best Looking Campus in the State by the Florida Leader, a magazine for college students.

Architect Charles Schmidt believes the project works in large part because of its scale. "The buildings relate to humans," he stresses. "It was designed for students to park on the perimeter and then to walk through the campus. We placed a lakefront observatory at the entrance that serves as the welcoming front door. And from there, things just get better. It's a pleasant and functional campus made for humans to enjoy. I'm glad they do."