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This new entrance cultivates the relationship of Houston Christian University (then known as Houston Baptist University) to Houston and the world. The goals of the symbolic doorway are to extend a significant presence of the campus along Highway 59 and its 275,000+ daily commuters, create an entry threshold to the campus, develop a processional boulevard and better unit the campus and city with Belin Tower as its epicenter.

The vision for the landscape supports an active and engaged student body while also creating a more lush, leafy green campus. The main entry boulevard is expanded into a pedestrian-friendly walking route. Mature shade trees create a comfortable microclimate in areas for students to gather, eat lunch, rest, and maybe read a book or check email. The gathering areas along the main entry boulevard provide seating, lighting, and places to relax so that students can enjoy time outdoors and connect with each other.

Location

Houston, Texas

Collaboration

Falon Land Studio

Design Team

Kevin Barden, Joe Rivers and Hung Nguyen

Renderings

Rivers Barden Architects

Typology

Commercial

Date

2020

Process

Explore

The Tree Farm Golf Club

Located on an ideal site featuring sandy soils and rolling topography near Aiken, South Carolina, The Tree Farm seeks to bring to life a transcendent modern golf experience that respects, amplifies, and blends in with the natural landscape. In line with this vision, there will be no flashy buildings driven by a desire for luxurious experiences. Instead, the master plan and buildings for the project all work toward creating simple, thoughtful spaces that are rooted in and responsive to the place, climate, culture, and rich history of the game of golf.

Nicole Buergers

Food and Beverage

In this episode our resident architects Joe Rivers and Kevin Barden visit Nicole Buergers. Nicole is a beekeeper and cheesemonger from Houston, Texas, a career that grew from a passion project into a full-fledged business. Kevin and Joe were introduced to Nicole through Minh Nguyen, owner of Cafe TH and former guest of this podcast. The three of them sat down with Nicole to discuss her beekeeping service and how her diverse background feeds into its success.

The Merit of the Mud Room

Writing

Houston, a city molded by the oil and gas industry, is a place of energy, innovation, and, at times, a little dirt. As architects who live within this soiled city, we understand the unique challenges posed by the grit and grime of our surroundings. For this reason, we propose an often underestimated yet invaluable component of home design – the extra-large mud room. Serving as more than just a transitional space, a well-designed mud room offers a multitude of benefits that contribute to the organization, hygiene, and overall well-being of a home here in Houston.