Title: Arthur Ashe Community Center
Location of Proejct: Richmond, Virginia
Project Completion Date: N/A
Firm Name: Hanbury

Short Description: The Arthur Ashe Community Center proposes a transformation of the current space, to better honor the legacy of it's namesake. Gesturing to unity, the renovation is crowned with a lightweight screened canopy and Y-shaped columns, providing shade and dynamic shadows. To offer natural daylighting into the gymnasium, we propose removing the upper walls and replacing them with translucent glazing panels, allowing diffused natural daylighting to permeate the volume. Community spaces will be distributed throughout the facility, with a community hub situated between the gymnasium and the curtainwall addition, offering two levels of flexible multi-purpose rooms.

Architect's Statement: Arthur Ashe was much more than a storied tennis player; he was an activist, author, educator and a tireless campaigner for civil rights and racial equality.

As part of our plan to properly honor his legacy, we are proposing that the existing facility be fully renovated and transformed into a first-class venue for Richmond Public Schools and the community.

Our design makes a gesture to openness by removing the opaque awning structures on the south and west sides and replacing them with a transparent building addition of full-height curtainwall glazing to allow direct visuals into the facility from the neighboring community. Gesturing to unity, the renovation is crowned with a lightweight screened canopy and Y-shaped columns, providing shade and dynamic shadows. To offer natural daylighting into the gymnasium, we propose removing the upper walls and replacing them with translucent glazing panels, allowing diffused natural daylighting to permeate the volume. Community spaces will be distributed throughout the facility, with a community hub situated between the gymnasium and the curtainwall addition, offering two levels of flexible multi-purpose rooms.