Photo courtesy Foster + Partners
Set in the natural wetlands of the TPC Sawgrass golf course, the new Global Home of the PGA Tour designed by Foster + Partners has opened in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
Gathering the organization under one roof for the first time, the building offers an innovative vision for a workplace in a post-pandemic world. Focused on health and wellbeing, the design aims to blur boundaries between the landscape and interior spaces with shaded outdoor terraces and amenities embracing new ways of working and collaboration.
“We were inspired by the quality of the landscape, the interplay of light and shade, and the water,” said Nigel Dancey, head of studio at Foster + Partners. “This led to our very first sketches, maximizing light and views beneath a generous overhanging roof creating shaded external terraces and plaza spaces. The building was then set amidst a ‘natural’ lake on axis with the famous 17th green.”
Nature plays a key role in the design incorporating principles of biophilia proven to enhance staff wellbeing and improve the quality of a workplace. Focus has been on creating a rich experience throughout the building, while enhancing the connections with the surrounding landscape and flooding the building with natural light and fresh air.
The low-slung three-storied structure is nestled in the landscape and surrounded by a newly created lake defining the arrival experience. The floorplates are bisected by an atrium running the length of the building, the social heart of the building for company-wide events. The atrium is lined with flexible formal and informal meeting spaces with amenities for staff.
The two building bays are connected by 6-m (20-ft) wide bridges encouraging chance meetings and allowing informal gatherings along the edges without impeding the flow of people. A grand central stair cascading down the central atrium creates a spatial and visual flow between successive levels. Flexible workspaces located on the wide terraces along the atrium and far ends of the building on the upper floors support a mobile workforce. Looking onto the lush landscape surrounding the golf course, the western end of the building contains a new staff café and gym on the ground floor.
The glazed façades and atrium fill the building with natural light, allowing for panoramic views of the surrounding landscape. The building’s raised floor aims to futureproof the building with flexibility to change internal configurations over time. The design uses a simple and understated palette of materials acting as a backdrop to an energetic workplace.
Continuing its partnership with the Tour, the practice has begun work on the second phase of the project with the design of a new digital media building helping to create an integrated campus at TPC Sawgrass.
