At the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains, the town of Dahlonega sits. It's picturesque landscapes and unique geological features were selected by the American Institute of Architects to be the subject of the 2025 COTE Top Ten Competition. The AIA's Committee on the Environment (COTE) prompted high-achieving architecture students and professionals to create a civic building that addressed the needs of Dahlonega's community. Flood prevention efforts were highlighted by the committee given the impact of Hurricane Helene in western Carolina and the urge to protect the beloved Lake Zwerner.
Ethan Davis, a graduate student on SCAD's track and field team, tackled this prompt in a dual-quarter course spanning Winter and Spring of 2025. He was especially drawn to the project because of his affinity for North Carolina, developed during his undergraduate schooling at Queens University of Charlotte. After completing case studies on AIA COTE certified buildings and participating in a field trip to the site in Dahlonega, he was able to integrate an angle that many other competition participants overlooked.
Dahloenga is well-known in the cycling community for its road and mountain cycling, but these communities appeared to lack architectural support.  "It was lacking in a lot of infrastructure for trails," Ethan said. This inspired his response to the AIA competition prompt: Figure8. "The idea is that you can bike to this place, hit the trails, get a bite to eat, take a spin class, or get community services."
Just outside of Dahlonega the Bull Mountain trail system hosts 36 miles of widely renowned trails in the Chattahoochee National Forest. The legendary road cycling courses, Six Gap Century and Three Gap Fifty, are also within a ten-minute travel time of Dahlonega's downtown. Ethan identified this niche as an opportunity to provide civic services and connect the community in a space that could benefit the environment.
"The concept came from the idea of water," Ethan says. "The visual that fell through was an infinity sign which is where I got Figure8." The final designs of Figure8 include motifs of curves and natural patterns that Ethan knew would be important to the design's success from the beginning. He says, "water is powerful, it's mysterious, and it always comes back."
As Figure8 developed, Ethan found other ways to utilize water as a resource and include environmental protections in his design. Since the build would be nestled in a mountain, gravity would assist in creating a natural way to collect rainwater and lead it to a filtration system. Collecting the rainwater also landed to a decreased chance of flooding. Ethan integrated a funnel-like structure in a high curve of the building that brings the water to a filtration and irrigation system to be used in various ways throughout the space. He continued finding ways for this feature to benefit the community by opening the design as a scientific education opportunity. "It becomes a museum space where people can see how water flows through the site," he says.
To continue combating potential flood hazards, Ethan integrated structures that were needed to create a safe and supportive environment for the cyclists of Dahlonega. "There are elevated bike trail services," Ethan says. "Water flows underneath the trails in case of heavy rains flowing down the mountain."
"We do studies cutting through different areas of the building to see if we can find the one that speaks about what's happening inside the best," Ethan says. One of the studies he submitted as part of his COTE Ten competition board is a synthesis section showing the building cut in half. This allowed for the committee to see the internal functions of Figure8. In the synthesis section he also included information on environmental factors such as wind patterns and sun angles. "It shows more depth in understanding of energy performance."
Ethan's overall approach when creating Figure8 represented many of his values as an architect. "I focused more on community, public transportation, recreation, environmental health, and exploring nature on a bike," he says. These values are also informing his thesis project that he began working on this fall quarter. The project is set in Charlotte, N.C., a city that has become a "home base" for Ethan since his time at Queens.
"I've really progressed from my undergrad, especially athletically," Ethan says. In his time at SCAD he's broken many of his personal records and has his goals set high for his final season as a Bee. "I wasn't expecting it with the heavier load of architecture, but the progress has been very cool."