CPCC Levine Campus Phase 3

Located on Central Piedmont Community College’s (CPCC) Levine Campus in Matthews, NC, the facility was constructed as a part of a $22 million project that included an addition to the adjoining Levine II building. The bond-funded campus expansion established spaces for programs, such as health care studies, that the college determined are the most needed to support the area’s economy. CPCC wanted this facility to be an academic and cultural destination for the entire community.  The academic building includes a new library, academic learning center, and math emporium. Spaces include classrooms, computer labs, and offices. The main lobby of the building serves as a pre-function space for the Georgia Tucker Fine Arts Hall. This black box theater with retractable tiered seating is designed to maximize flexibility and function as a large classroom, traditional theater, theater in the round, and a community conference space. The third floor of the building is primarily dedicated to healthcare and includes nurse aid bed labs, procedure labs, medical assisting clinical lab, a simulation lab and administrative instruction lab with adjacent classroom and computer lab space. The dean of nursing and allied health’s office suite is adjacently located to the teaching spaces.

Central Piedmont Community College’s (CPCC) aim was for this facility to be an academic and cultural destination for students and the community. CPCC established a goal for the building to be water and energy efficient, in addition to providing high quality indoor air and a pleasant environment. To be sensitive to both the surrounding environment and the health of occupants, the project pursued LEED certification. The design approach focused on water efficiency, energy efficiency, life cycle cost, and the quality of the learning environment.  

Through selection of efficient plumbing fixtures and fittings, this academic building uses 40% less potable water than the water use baseline calculated for the building, which equates to a water savings of 158,820 gallons annually.  CPCC placed a strong emphasis on sustainability strategies that conserved energy and reduced the building’s overall carbon footprint. The project team designed building system efficiencies to achieve an energy cost savings of 30%, which is estimated to cut 2,572,970 kBtu per year and save the college $28,674 annually. Enhanced commissioning services were provided to ensure the installation and performance of the building’s mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems. 

Images by Maylone Photography.