The Gladys Valley Marine Studies Building on Oregon State University’s coastal campus in Newport, Oregon, is one of only two projects to win a Project Excellence Award from the COPRI (Coasts, Oceans, Ports, Rivers) Institute. The award recognizes outstanding projects that demonstrate exceptional design or construction innovation in coastal or river areas.
Supporting a progressive interdisciplinary curriculum, this university research building models inventive resilient design in a challenging inundation zone. Engineered to withstand a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and related tsunami impacts, it is one of the first vertical tsunami evacuation sites in the U.S. An emergency assembly area serving the surrounding community is accessed by a unique exterior ramp guiding people to the roof.