ALCOSAN VISITOR'S CENTER

Fall 2013 - Individual Project

The educational visitor’s center is located at the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority in Pittsburgh, PA. ALCOSAN processes up to 250 million gallons of water daily and their goal for this project was to educate the public about water usage.

 

The driving force behind the design of the visitor’s center was the concept of erosion. This erosion can be seen in the carved out plan of the building, the eroded river’s edge, the central water retention basin, and in the sloping of the building sections towards the river. The building was also shaped by specific views out from each wing of the building. The architecture utilizes sustainable strategies, such as clerestory windows and thermal mass to be environmentally friendly.