Located on the 1,100-acre grounds of the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, less than 20 miles southwest of Minneapolis, the Tashjian Bee and Pollinator Discovery Center forms the nucleus of a new area centered around food production and sustainable land-management strategies. With the University of Minnesota as the client, “we had a very supportive user for a sustainable project,” says MSR Design founding principal emeritus Tom Meyer, FAIA.

Using time-tested passive strategies, including a well-insulated envelope, radiant heating and cooling systems, a geothermal field, and photovoltaics, resulted in a 71% EUI reduction from the national average for the building type. A sanitary drain field helps with water conservation and obviated the need for a half-mile-long connection to the municipal sewer system.