On Sunday, August 28th, 2011, the Taylor ISD Board hosted a dedication ceremony and open house for the new Taylor High School. In 2008, the Taylor community voted to fund a new high school to replace the existing facility built in 1969. The dedication ceremony featured speakers such as Danny Ward, THS Principal; Jerry Vaughn, TISD Superintendent; political action committee chair Jesse Ancira Jr.; Jim Dunaway, Taylor City Manager; Mayor Don Hill; and Brad Moss, TISD Board President.

On Friday, August 12th, GSC Architects attended the 2011 IIDA Texas/Oklahoma Chapter Awards Gala in Dallas, Texas. GSC was honored to receive the prestigious Pinnacle Award for a medium sized firm. This award is the highest honor that the IIDA Texas/Oklahoma Chapter can bestow upon a design firm.  It is granted only to firms who have consistently contributed to the highest aspirations of the profession, community and to the IIDA organization.

We are honored to have received this award and look forward to continuing our support of the interior design community!

The Round Rock ISD Technology Center, a GSC Architects project completed in early 2010, just received confirmation from the Green Building Certification Institute that LEED Silver certification has been achieved!  The project was awarded 35 points to earn the LEED Silver rating.  Congratulations to the project team for a job well done.

Click here to read more about the project.

Wednesday, June 1st was a monumental occasion for the 25 high school students of the 2011 graduating class at Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired. Not only did these 25 students make up one of the largest graduating classes in this school's history, but they were the first class ever to accept their diplomas in the newly completed auditorium. While several changes were made to the original design during construction, and it took significant effort from all involved parties to complete the project in time for the event, the reward of watching those students walk across the stage to accept their diplomas made it well worth the effort.

On Tuesday, May 17th, The Hays County Commissioner's Court selected the design-build team of GSC Architects and the Lott Brothers to create its future Precinct 2 Office Building. The building will provide new space for the commissioner, justice of the peace, adult and juvenile probation and the tax assessor-collector. It will be located in the Uptown Kyle development on Kohler's Crossing.

Of the 13 companies that responded to the County's Request for Qualifications, "Lott Brothers and GSC were chosen because they showed the best ability to meet an aggressive construction schedule while saving Hays County money." - Brenda Jenkins, Broaddus & Associates

GSC Principal-in-Charge Joseph LaRocca will be leading the architectural design portion of the project. "We are looking forward to designing such a prominent building for the County. Working with Broaddus & Associates and the County, we will complete the design phase as soon as possible to help Hays County residents achieve the best value for their construction dollars," said LaRocca.

To read the full article written in the Hays Free Press, click here.

GSC Architects recently held an office-wide contest for employees to reuse and repurpose their old business cards, appropriately named CARDstruction.

Employees were asked to make use of the "vintage" GSC cards that could no longer be distributed after the company rebrand, relocation and name change at the end of last year. Staff entered in three different categories: 1) Most creative use of cards, 2) Most useful/functional re-purpose, 3) Staff choice for best overall design.

The 30-year old 700 Lavaca building in the heart of downtown Austin was purchased by Travis County as part of an on-going master plan for the county's central campus district. The building will serve as the new Commissioners Courtroom where public meetings and media events will be held. The project scope also includes offices for the Judge and 3 of the Commissioners, a new cafeteria and other associated public spaces.

GSC Architects and The Lawrence Group were awarded the 64,000 SF project in April and will be well under way with programming and design by the end of the month. The diverse consultant team includes specialists in broadcast studio design, lighting, acoustics, security and food service. The firm HS&A will provide project management for Travis County on this project and assist in integrating the project into the scope of work for the upper floors.

"We are looking forward to updating such a prominent building in Austin and working with the County," said GSC's Principal In Charge, Tom Cornelius. "The building was a good find for the County. The former bank lobby presents challenges but also offers many architectural opportunities".

Click here to read more about the project in The Austin American Statesman.

On Friday, April 1st, GSC Architects attended the 2011 Austin Business Journal's Best of Real Estate Awards. Two GSC projects received awards.

The new ACC Round Rock Campus, completed in Fall 2010, received the Social Impact award. The project is the most ambitious in ACC's history and opened on time and at full capacity.

The Texas School for the Blind & Visually Impaired revitalization project in Central Austin demonstrates a community effort to creating productive citizens. The project received the Best Government Project award.

GSC project team members are pictured below.

GSC Architects was interviewed by Green Building + Design Magazine last summer. The article is now out in this month's issue and features Austin Community College's Round Rock Campus.

Click here to read the article.

(Note: at the time the article was sent to press, GSC Architects was still referred to as "GS&C")

Gorzycki Middle School, a GSC Architects project completed in August 2009, received an Outstanding Project Award in the spring issue of Learning By Design.

The Diane Gorzycki Middle School achieved success for the Austin ISD, the community and the environment.   The building orientation takes advantage of the steep sloping site, GS&C designed the school with 3 floors to capture views of the Austin's skyline.  The school is an achievement of sustainable design on many levels, obtaining a Three-Star Rating from the Austin Energy Green Building Program.  Thoughtful details were designed to conserve energy, ranging from the occupancy sensor lighting controls to the high reflective roofing material.   GS&C implemented a creative way-finding system to create a sense of community for each grade level.  Each grade resides in one of the four color-coded wings of the building, which converge to a Central Library and Commons area at the building's heart.  A directional compass was designed in the floor pattern of the common area for additional teaching opportunities.  The library, gym and dining room offer separate access for community use after hours.   The campus incorporates several outdoor gathering areas for the students, parents and community.  They include tree and bench areas close to the gym and dining area.  We have also incorporated an outdoor classroom that was created with onsite boulders in an existing grove of trees.   The Diane Gorzycki Middle School achieved success for the Austin ISD, the community and the environment.

GSC implemented a creative way-finding system to create a sense of community for each grade level. Each grade resides in one of the four color-coded wings of the building, which converge to a Central Library and Commons area at the building's heart. A directional compass was designed in the floor pattern of the common area for additional teaching opportunities. The library, gym and dining room offer separate access for community use after hours.

Click here to see the full article