Designed by Steven Ehrlich of Ehrlich Architects, the Cronkite building was one of the 95 buildings and urban planning projects from 38 nations, and one of three buildings affiliated with U.S. institutions of higher education, to be recognized in the 2010 awards. The building is also Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-Silver-certified and houses the Cronkite School and Eight/KAET, the ASU-operated PBS station.
The Walter Cronkite School features a 30 square feet exposed structural concrete column grid with post-tensioned concrete floor slabs. The exterior facade of the building is clad in glass, masonry and multi-colored metal panels inspired by U.S. broadcast frequency spectrum allocations. Satellite dishes for transmission are housed on the roof.
The ground floor of the school house retail spaces with shaded arcades fostering outdoor seating and café life. The main entrance is flanked by a three-story ‘front porch’ facing a green civic space, inculcating a sense of community connectivity. Most of the school’s upper levels have open terraces overlooking Central Avenue.
The Cronkite School occupies the second and third floors and a portion of the fourth and sixth floors. The school also features an airy, multi-tiered First Amendment Forum at the core of the building. Half of the sixth floor has been customized for the Cronkite News Watch.
The contest honored a range of buildings including corporate offices, cultural sites, universities, industrial facilities and private homes. A jury of Mexican architects affiliated with the Colegio de Arquitectos de la Ciudad de Mexico, Sociedad de Arquitectos Mexicanos chose the winners from hundreds of entries.
The International Architecture Awards are conferred on the world’s most significant new buildings and urban or landscape developments, by the Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design in conjunction with the European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.
The awards will be presented and exhibited at ‘The City and The World conference’ to be held in Spain, from November 4-7, 2010. Following that, the awards exhibition will tour Europe and the US.
