LA JOLLA – Scripps Research has opened a new 83,000-square-foot laboratory building at its La Jolla campus.
Built on the site of two former parking lots, the opening of the two-story Chi-Huey Wong Laboratory for Biomedical Research “marks a significant milestone in enabling new interdisciplinary collaborations across chemical and life sciences,” according to Scripps Research.
Designed by DGA, with San Diego offices in Bankers Hill, the new building is one of the largest structures built by Scripps Research and is designed to meet LEED silver standards for green buildings.
DPR Construction, based in University City, was the general contractor.
With a façade of concrete, structural glass and wood with large windows that allow natural light to flood the interior, the building has an open floor plan to encourage collaboration.
The wedge-shaped site is among the most prominent in Torrey Pines as Genesee Avenue curves at the top of a hill to become N. Torrey Pines Road and the Wong laboratory creates a new gateway to the Scripps Research campus, said Danny Campbell, a DGA architect.
Architect
DGA
With Scripps’ reputation as a premier research institution, “It’s very appropriate that Scripps Research is at the gateway,” Campbell said.
“The building fits on the topography, then kind of pushes back into the landscape as the terrain works around it,” Campbell said, adding that the building curves to match the curving roadway.
“As the building curves, we have these vertical fins that provide shading along the west side,” Campbell said. “It also gives you the kind of look to the building that it seems to change as you’re driving along the road. The fins kind of change in their angle.”
Because of the way it’s built on a concrete pedestal to hold the structure off the ground, the building from some vantage points seems to almost float in the air.
Entrance to the building is through a two-story lobby that has a skylight to allow more natural light inside.
The inside layout has open bench spaces and the full-height glass that “just makes for a great workspace environment,” Campbell said.
Michael Bollong, an award-winning associate professor of chemistry who works in the new building, said that the layout is more efficient than old labs.
“All of the labs, for the most part, are connected to each other,” Bollong said, in contrast to older designs in which individual labs were closed off in private areas.
“We’re all working with each other,” Bollong said, adding that “That will be helpful as we try to increase our size and retain and recruit the best faculty in the world.”
The building has electric vehicle charging stations, a light-colored cool roof and landscaping comprised of drought-resistant plants.
A new promenade connects the building to the rest of the Scripps Research campus.
“It will be activated with a coffee cart to serve employees. There’s also plenty of Wi-Fi in this outdoor space,” Campbell said.
Scripps Research declined to say what it cost to build, but said funding included an undisclosed donation a from Samuel Yin, a Taiwanese businessman and creator of the Tang Prize.
Expanding
About 200 people will work in the new building, which will bring together laboratory teams focused on drug discovery, freeing up lab space for incoming faculty.
Scripps Research recently added eight scientists to its staff and space was at a premium, according to Bollong.
Associate Professor, Chemistry
Scripps Research
“We’re growing our faculty and, as a result, we needed to increase our physical space,” Bollong said. “There’s also the need to modernize the spade and keep up with the cutting-edge research that we’re doing.”
Bollong said that researchers working in the new building are developing “small molecule drugs to promote regenerative organ repair.”
“Folks in these labs are making new drug molecules, they’re making new building blocks for life, they’re reprogramming life to understand how it works,” Bollong said.
The building is named for the Scripps Family Chair Professor of Chemistry, Chi-Huey Wong.
Wong had received several awards for his work, including the Wolf Prize in Chemistry, the Tetrahedron Prize for Creativity in Organic Synthesis, the American Institute of Chemists Chemical Pioneer Award and the Robert A. Welch Award in Chemistry.
Wong also is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Sciences and Academia Sinica.
DGA
FOUNDED: 1995
HEADQUARTERS: Mountain View
PRESIDENT & MANAGING PRINCIPAL: Randall Dowler
BUSINESS: architectural and design firm
EMPLOYEES: 182
WEBSITE: www.dgaonline.com
CONTACT: 619-685-3990
NOTABLE: DGA is recognized as a leader in science and technology design, working with private and public clients on projects ranging from new campus design to building upgrades Scripps Research
Scripps Research
FOUNDED: 1924
HEADQUARTERS: La Jolla
PRESIDENT & CEO: Peter Schultz
BUSINESS: research institute
FACULTY: 149
WEBSITE: www.scripps.edu
CONTACT: 858-784-1000
NOTABLE: Scientists at Scripps Research have won six Nobel Prizes
