The outdoor spaces are placed in the southern portion of the site for maximum sun exposure. In addition to play equipment, there will be a children's environmental learning area. The scheme provides for a projected 2nd phase in which the administration "pod" becomes a 4th classroom, and a two story addition, containing parent education functions as well as the relocated administration spaces, is placed on the western edge along Philips Drive.

The design responds thematically to the other architectural components of the project and to the Marin City USA Design Guidelines prepared by Elbasani Logan. Despite its small scale, the Learning Center will have a "civic" function and we hope it will become a community landmark. The entry tower, especially, has been designed to recall and reinforce the pavilions and vertical features found in the shopping center.

The classroom pods recall the form and massing of both the Marinship industrial buildings and the "false-front" architecture of 19th century western towns, including Sausalito. That theme is strongly reinforced by the walkway, with its suggestion of a covered wooden boardwalk, and the roof tile makes a visual connection to the Mission Revival style Harriet Tubman building just to the west of the site.