The Hidden Creek Community Center is envisioned as the social, recreational and cultural heart of Hillsboro — a growing suburban city and home to high-tech industry situated 20 miles west of Portland. Located within a developing 20-acre park containing a second-growth forest, the community center is designed to intensify the experience of the site attributes as an extension of the natural park setting.
Configured as a place-maker, the facility defines a series of courtyards for community gathering and recreation activities. The cruciform plan accentuates the visual and physical connections from the entry and community spaces to the park, and from the recreation spaces to the woodland. Oriented to the south to engage the park space are the lobby, a community room with events terrace, a multi-use classroom, a child watch room, and group exercise rooms. The gymnasium, cardio-weight loft and outdoor futsal court are oriented to the east, capturing views and connections to the woodland trails.
Innovative prefabricated building systems were utilized for their economy and to expedite the construction schedule. This included insulated tilt-up concrete walls and mass timber construction utilizing cross-laminated timber panels, making it the first CLT community center built in the United States. The layered exterior skin is designed to blend harmoniously into the evergreen forest setting. The outer skin of custom-profiled metal panel references the color and organic texture of tree bark — peeled back to frame openings and expose the warmth of the inner-layer wood siding and spruce CLT.
Ty Tucker Tennis Center, The Ohio State University
