This project's goal is to cultivate a thriving UCCS culture at the Heller Center by creating a multi-purpose gathering space in the immediate vicinity to the SEAS Garden area. Matt Barton taught a hands-on class last Fall ('14) that laid the foundations for the space with a focus on designing with sustainable practices in mind and using natural materials. The class worked very hard to establish the initial site, digging rubble trenches (to protect against frost heaves), packing tires with sledge-hammers (Earthship techniques), mixing cob (workshop with Colorado Cob Company), mortaring stone, and constructing "cordwood" back rests, all from onsite and local resources. The next class (Fall '15 - Sustainable Spaces and Creative Horticulture, Theory and Practice in Visual/Performing Arts) will finish the first phase with shade sails that harvest rain for plants (now legal up to 110 gallons!), experiment with sculptural approaches to gardening contexts, and create an overall magical environment merging form and function. There are endless symbiotic potentials with the new permaculture area, various courses, and events (poetry readings, outdoor film screenings, music/performing arts, and community workshops.)