Recap: CSU Spur Terra Tour
Construction of Colorado State University’s Spur Terra building, designed by Anderson Mason Dale Architects, is targeting completion in Spring 2022. This tour offered a glimpse at the diverse programmatic elements that make up the site, including teaching and culinary kitchens, food labs and outdoor garden and terrace spaces. The building will feature several one-of-a-kind agricultural environments: service laboratories for plant and soil testing; controlled-environment grow chambers; and the transparent, gabled rooftop greenhouse visible from I-70.
About the building: Located at the epicenter of the National Western Center’s (NWC) transformational agribusiness redevelopment, Spur Terra is a year-round destination that integrates research, outreach and education into a single immersive environment. The site is an interactive place for multigenerational visitors to learn from educators, researchers and industry partners. The building furthers Colorado State University’s (CSU) mission of having a global impact in food and agriculture at the convergence of urban and rural communities, history and innovation. Designed by Anderson Mason Dale Architects as an interconnected “discovery landscape,” science, research, education and technology are displayed in ways that can be shared broadly with the community. Diverse programs associated with food, agriculture, education and community engagement tell the story of modern agricultural innovation while connecting visitors with where their food comes from.
About the tour guides: Ben Blanchard, AIA, Principal, Anderson Mason Dale Architects, served as a Design Principal on the CSU Spur Terra team. He is a dedicated designer known for his holistic and iterative process of exploration, bringing about meaningful solutions at all project scales. Ben has been involved in diverse civic, public, private and higher education projects while at AMD. He has recently contributed to AMD’s impressive Southeast Wyoming Welcome Center, Dahlia Campus for Health & Well-Being and Hotel and Transit Center at Denver International Airport projects.
Julie Zurakowski, AIA, LEED AP, Project Architect | Project Manager, Anderson Mason Dale Architects, served as Project Manager on the Spur Terra team. With a depth of experience in higher education, Julie excels in every aspect of the design process through an ability to translate intent into a thorough set of program and design criteria. Her focus is on design and technical development, building systems integration to manage the project Building Information Models that serve as the basis for the team’s drawings and, ultimately, the successful execution of projects.
Dan Youngren, RA, Project Architect, Anderson Mason Dale Architects, served as Project Architect on the Spur Terra team. Dan is a creative problem-solver, able to derive solutions in the field that honor each project’s original design intent. Dan has more than 15 years’ experience and is especially skilled at facilitating project entitlements in multiple jurisdictions and delivering highly technical projects.
