Akron-Summit County Public Library, Ellet Library

Sited on a former community park, this branch library is appropriate to the residential character of the site, as are deep front lawn and sweeping roofline. An exterior palette of deep red brick and standing seam metal reinforce the imagery. Parking and the main entry are located in the back, ensuring a sense of dignity along the main street. Inside, one of two loft like wings is dedicated to the...

University of Mount Union, Engineering & Business Building

The University of Mount Union retained Westlake Reed Leskosky to renovate the existing Wilson Science Hall into a classroom and lab building for its new engineering program and to provide additional office space for the Department of Business, Economics, and Marketing. The existing building, constructed in the 1950s, possessed various science labs, in addition to lecture spaces, faculty offices, and associated support program.

The project renovated...

Hathaway Brown School

Westlake Reed Leskosky has a longstanding relationship with Hathaway Brown School, a private independent school for girls situated on an eighteen-acre campus in Shaker Heights, Ohio. This 20,000 sf natatorium addition, designed in association with Graham Gund Architects, includes an eight-lane, 25-yard competition pool, 1-meter board diving well, instructional pool and support functions. The materials match the context of the existing school, assembled so as to create a light pavilion-like...

Lake Erie College, Lake Erie College Austin Hall of Science

Westlake Reed Leskosky completed a feasibility study for the renovation and re-imaging of the Austin Hall of Science in 2007. Built in 1963, the existing building is a steel and concrete structure with pre-cast concrete exterior wall panels of a modern design. The goals for the renovation include: changing the exterior appearance of the building to better fit the traditional architecture of the campus; making the building...

Kent State University, Math and Computer Science Building

A classroom building for the university's mathematics department is located adjacent to the other science buildings of Kent State University. The completion of the building added a key component to an existing campus quadrangle. A 4,000-square foot research library on the top floor was a major design focus of the project. Its roof is expressed as a sine wave which is repeated in the interior linear metal ceiling. Flexibility is...

Western Reserve Academy, Morgan Hall

Burton D. Morgan Hall is a newly constructed administration building on the campus of this private school, designed to complement the Federalist style of the historic structures that comprise "Brick Row." Its program consists of Administration, including the office of the Headmaster; Admissions; Development and Alumni Relations; a Board Room; and a Health Clinic. Its materials include red brick with limestone features, white-painted wood trim and columns, clay tile roof,...

Cleveland State University, Music and Communications Building

Named Building of the Year by the Ohio House of Representatives when opened, this advanced facility incorporates a unique marriage of music and computers, with audio and video recording throughout the building, linked to central control centers. With the exception of the two pyramidal performance halls one 900 seats and the other 275 seats - the program was organized into a four-story assemblage of recital halls, classrooms, teaching laboratories, rehearsal...

Kent State University, School of Journalism and Mass Communication

Westlake Reed Leskosky is the architect and engineer for the renovation and major expansion of Franklin Hall into Kent State University's School of Journalism and Mass Communication. This creates a state of the art facility that exposes students to the working world of mass media: print, radio, internet, and teleproduction. The renovated Franklin Hall houses faculty offices and various convergence labs: technical media rooms where information in all formats is...

Saint Vincent – Saint Mary High School, St. Vincent-St. Mary High School Master Plan

Selected through a design competition, Westlake Reed Leskosky completed a Master Plan for this co-educational, college preparatory Catholic High School in Akron, Ohio. The goals for the project were to give vision and direction to the campus for the next decade and beyond, while expressing the school's Catholic mission, displaying the energy and excitement of campus activities, and creating a legacy of fellowship for future generations of students, faculty and...

Oberlin College, The Bertram and Judith Kohl Building

The Kohl Building serves as the innovative new home of the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music's acclaimed Department of Jazz Studies and its academic programs in music history and music theory. The new 37,000 SF facility interfaces with the adjacent Conservatory complex and creates an elevated pedestrian link that ties in three buildings. A massive cantilevered roof, three stories high, hovers in the air between the new and...

Pennsylvania State University, Eisenhower Auditorium

Westlake Reed Leskosky was retained by Pennsylvania State University to conduct a study for additions and renovations to the Eisenhower Auditorium.  Built in 1974, the 2,589 seat facility is home to the Center for the Performing Arts. The focus of the study involved five key priorities that will allow the Eisenhower to accommodate contemporary programming and usage.  These include:  plaza improvements and integration of building with Shortlidge Mall; expansion of...

Wilmington Performing Arts Center, Wilmington Performing Arts Center

Representing a private/public sector partnership, the new 70,000 sf Concert Theatre on the University of North Carolina Wilmington campus will serve the University as well as the surrounding community. A primary user of the space will be the Wilmington Symphony. Complementing the traditional architectural style of the campus and influenced by regional historic landmarks, the design features a brick volume fronted by an exterior portico and glass enclosed veranda that...

St. Ignatius High School, Breen Center for the Performing Arts

The $11.5 million performing arts center at St. Ignatius High School is sited at a terminus view corridor across the Lorain-Carnegie Bridge, strengthening the urban conditions of the site and reinforcing connections to the 16-acre school campus and outdoor Mall to the north. The 36,000 sq. ft. building includes: a 550-seat proscenium theatre, a 150-seat band room, a rehearsal room, chorus room, practice rooms, and a range of stage and...

Cleveland State University, Fine and Visual Arts Facility

Westlake Reed Leskosky was retained to design a new 178,000 SF Fine and Visual Arts facility for Cleveland State University. After studying what the scale of programmatic elements meant for the site, our firm determined that the best solution would be to expand the existing communications building out to Euclid Avenue, combining performance spaces and allowing a sharing of back-of-house and support spaces. The visual arts program would be located...

Jeanne B. McCoy Community Center for the Arts

Through the collaboration of the local public School District, New Albany Village and Township, and the New Albany Company, the $15 million performing arts center is the cultural center for this fast-growing community just outside Columbus, Ohio. The Center includes a proscenium theatre, which is a venue for the Columbus Symphony, a small black box/rehearsal room, a dance studio, a range of stage and performer support spaces, classrooms, and an...

Maricopa Community College District, Paradise Valley Community College Performing Arts Center

Designed as a campus center for music, theater and art, the 24,870 square foot teaching and performance facility incorporates a 281 seat theater, rehearsal spaces, classrooms, practice rooms and gallery. The exterior, in form, material and color, is inspired by the natural characteristics of the starkly beautiful setting; chiseled forms and tactile surfaces evoke and interact with the distant mountains, undergoing continual transformation under the dramatic natural light. The intent...

Sonoran Desert Center for the Arts

Westlake Reed Leskosky's conceptual design for the Sonoran Desert Center for the Arts in Scottsdale, Arizona takes advantage of an extraordinary natural environment, revealing the beauty of the surrounding desert while being minimally invasive to the landscape. Encompassing 110,000 square feet, the planned campus includes a 2,000 seat theatre, a small studio theatre, a museum branch and amenities such as an outdoor patio grill and a full service restaurant. Illuminated...