At the University of California, San Diego’s newest residential college, health, sustainability, and resilience define the Future College Theater District Living and Learning Neighborhood. The 2,000-bed student housing project also features classrooms, meeting spaces, and retail stores, transforming 10 acres of two existing surface parking lots adjacent to La Jolla’s Playhouse District. The design leverages the site’s context to strengthen connections with the community, fostering relationships that begin on campus with students and faculty and expand to neighbors beyond campus.

Situated along the highest point of the University’s ridge line, the site is surrounded by the Historic Grove and the Open Space Preserve. Future College amplifies this beautiful regional aesthetic through sinuous pathways and trails that run along the retention basins of The Ramble. A study of the existing Urban Forest helped establish a data-driven design approach that amplifies the environmental benefits of the Future College’s design, celebrating a student-centered, research-focused, and service-oriented university. “Exponential Ecology” is woven into the design fabric, informing every decision from minute to major, promoting residents’ wellness while prioritizing climate responsibility.