The Oasis Community Center is the heart of UC Irvine’s first-year housing community. It is the first stop for incoming students and their families on day one – and it will continue to serve those students as they transition to campus life on their own. It’s core purpose is to invite students to create community with one another and to be a safe and welcoming place for all.
The Oasis is for eating, gathering, socializing, studying and seeking support. Recognizing that students have different social and study needs, different levels of comfort in open and in closed spaces and different thresholds for noisiness and distractions; the Oasis aims to foster a radically inclusive environment. A gradient of spaces are designed to meet a variety of needs, from vibrant ‘see and be seen’ open areas to flexible, scaled environments and quiet nooks for refuge. To further support student wellness and inclusive design, the Oasis includes biophilic design elements such as a high-degree of transparency through the building and to the outside for borrowed nature deep into the space, indoor/outdoor connections and graphic themes tied specifically to Mesa Court’s identity, in addition to all-gender facilities.
In order to truly create a central hub, placemaking outside the building is equally important to the interior space, drawing activity from the inside-out and vice versa. Navigating a 15’ grade change between Lower and Upper Mesa Court, the Oasis stitches together a previously disjointed campus connection and surrounding student housing buildings. With an authentic commitment to universal design, a terraced path along the west side of the building provides a safe and accessible campus connection, integrating shaded hillside student areas at various scales for eating, gathering and studying while tying together the two levels of the building, each hosting a distinct program component.
As an everyday part of life in Mesa Court, the Oasis will define a student’s first impression and leave an imprint as they continue on their campus journey, establish their identity and create their community in a supportive and inclusive environment.
Architect: The Miller Hull Partnership, LLP
General Contractor: Hathaway Dinwiddie Construction Company
Civil Engineer: FPL & Associates
Landscape Architect: Spurlock
Structural Engineer: Saiful Bouquet
Mechanical/Plumbing: ACCO Engineering Systems
Electrical: Alvine Engineering
Food Service: Webb Food Service
Acoustics: Stantec