Building a Community

Constructing Recreation Centers Requires a Unique Set of Skills
By Carrie Bui

Fitness classes, youth programming, elderly services, cultural arts—these are just a few of the activities offered at city recreation and community centers. Great community centers promote educational, recreational and social opportunities, but in order to meet all of the needs of the community, a specific building skill set is required and many challenges have to be overcome.

Recreation centers can be especially complex projects because of the multiple needs of the building. S. M. Wilson & Co.’s extensive construction experience served them well when the city of Arnold, Mo. requested their services on a new community center, and their continually gained knowledge is aiding the success for ongoing recreation center projects for the Jewish Community Center of St. Louis and a Salvation Army Community Center in Quincy, Ill.

City of Arnold Community Center

S. M. Wilson constructed a 55,000-square-foot community center, including indoor and outdoor pools, walking track, gymnasium and administrative support areas for the city of Arnold, Mo. S. M. Wilson was selected to perform pre-construction and construction management services for this project due to the\ company’s previous experience on similar recreational facilities and their ability to provide early conceptual estimating as well as work with the architect and other groups during pre-construction. “They wanted a durable project that was substantial and easy to maintain,” said S. M. Wilson Project Manager Gary Wille.

Part of the architect’s and construction manager’s responsibilities are to try and manage the owner’s expectations of the final product. This helps the owner understand from the very beginning what they’re getting from the project. “It’s pretty easy for us to visualize a building from a plan, but a lot of times, it’s difficult for the owner to see the finished product from a set of blueprints,” Wille said. “It’s helping the owner see the project from the start.”

Staying within a project’s budget is often the toughest challenge, and the Arnold Community Center was no exception, but that is where experience can lend a hand. “That was the hardest thing, trying to accomplish all their needs within their budget,” Wille noted. One component of budget challenges is attempting to accurately predict the market on materials pricing. An accurate prediction allows a contractor to provide the owner with the best project for their money.

The market is not the only place where budget issues arise. Sometimes, the vision of the owner or the architect doesn’t agree with the reality of the project’s budget. “The thing is, you’ve got to keep things going in a positive way. You try and guide them in a direction where they can accomplish the same thing at a reduced cost,” Wille said. He suggested adding or eliminating features as one solution to adapting a project to fit its budget constraints.

Mark Keane, Architect with Hastings & Chivetta Architects, provided an example of a budget challenge for the Arnold Community Center. The city wanted a physical connection between the fitness center building and the outdoor pool. However, due to budget constraints, they had to determine another way to connect the two. The architect used the creek running through the site to establish a visual connection.

“We’ve been very fortunate in that the city of Arnold understood they only had so much to spend,” Wille stated. “We were able to help guide the project in a way that allowed them to keep their vision.”

Jewish Community Center

Five years ago, the Jewish Community Center of St. Louis created a strategic plan to define the center’s focus. They developed five lines of service: early childhood education, day and resident camping, cultural arts and education, group social services and fitness and wellness. They determined that their current space could be utilized in a more efficient manner, allowing the community center to more effectively fulfill their five lines of service. Construction is complete for the fitness and wellness center and a renovation of the existing building for the other four missions is underway.

“S. M. Wilson was chosen because I’ve known Scott for 15 or 20 years,” stated Michael Staenberg, Chair of the JCC’s Board of Directors Executive Committee and President of THF Realty, “and I always appreciate the fact that he’s very thorough and his group is very thorough. I knew that I could count on him to do a very efficient job to put this project together, and they have done that.”

The project was divided into two phases. Phase one was to complete the construction of the new fitness center by May 2009. Phase two is the demolition and renovation of the existing building to house the administration offices, classrooms, performance center and kitchen. Phase two is scheduled for completion by February 2010.

The completed fitness center is already impressing the St. Louis community. Andy Sebacher, Architect with M+H Architects, explained that the visibility of the center was especially important to the owner. The design oriented the front entrance of the building so that it would face the main street and be visible to passing traffic. The impressiveness of the building continues once a visitor steps inside. “The wow factor as you walk in the door was important to them,” said Sebacher. “They wanted to see as much activity from as many of the spaces as possible.” Now, when visitors enter the JCC fitness building, they can see the pool to their left, a gymnasium to their right and above their heads, the fitness center.

However, these varying activity spaces, such as the aquatic center and the gymnasium, can present temperature and humidity control issues. Sebacher described the temperature and humidity controls as one of the most unique challenges in building a recreation center. In order to meet each area’s climate control needs, a building automation system was installed in the fitness center, explained Paul Kallestad of Charles E. Jarrell Contracting Company. The system allows different operating temperatures in each area.

Dave Schlueter, Senior Project Manager with S. M. Wilson, noted that a project of this size demands significant planning and communication with the owners, subcontractors, engineer and architect. Successful execution of a project this size requires a “team concept.”

Through regular coordination meetings with contractors and the owner, a positive working relationship with open communication is created early in the process. That relationship becomes key when solutions need to be determined for project issues. “We worked with the guys at Wilson to identify issues as early as possible,” stated Sebacher. “Between the owner, Wilson and the design team, we collaborated for a solution.”

Schlueter pointed out that communication was vital during demolition in phase two. A challenge on phase two has been working with the owner to coordinate demolition and construction as they moved out of the existing facility in phases. Schlueter said, “We were working in parts of the building while they were occupying other parts. It’s a very hands-on and knowledgeable owner, and the project requires a lot of continuous coordination to make sure we know what their needs are.” Collaborating for solutions is only productive when team members are openly communicating. “Communication is the key to good teamwork. Every person has a little piece in every decision and if they’re not involved, that piece gets lost,” proclaimed Sebacher. Solid teamwork is leading the project to success. “At this point, we are on track to complete the project successfully, thanks to each team member’s hard work and dedication,” noted Schlueter.

Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center

When the Quincy, Ill. Salvation Army was granted $40 million to build a new community and worship center, they knew they needed to find a construction manager that could guide them through the unfamiliar building process. After S. M. Wilson presented their proposal to the community center’s steering committee, the committee unanimously chose the construction management firm. “We knew that we needed to hire not only the best firm to do the job, but they needed to be people that were compatible personality-wise,” explained Patty Douglas, Director of Development and Quincy Kroc Project Facilitator. “We were so impressed that Mr. Wilson was a part of the team that came to present for us. It showed from the top down, they felt that we were important.”

The Quincy Kroc Community Center, which will begin construction in the fall of 2009, will feature a worship center that will double as a theater, concert and conference space, child watch area with outdoor playground, community rooms, rock climbing wall, fitness center, aquatic center, classrooms and a gymnasium. “Joan Kroc’s expectation that we needed to carry out was that the center would be built with the best quality materials and that it would be a very pleasing and inviting place of opportunity for people of all ages and income levels,” Douglas said. The facility will also be LEED-certified according to U.S. Green Building Council standards.

“Green building is becoming more commonplace,” said Laura Charlier, LEED Services Director with Enermodal Engineering, a consulting firm specializing in energy efficiency and environmentally sustainable buildings. “Quincy’s Kroc Corps Community Center is setting a good example for the community.”

The new community center hopes to achieve certification through site credits due to the center’s location near public transportation options and parking credits because of the Salvation Army’s carpooling and vanpooling options. Volunteers have offered to hand-water plants in order to receive water efficiency credits. The pool will use a defender filter which uses less water than a sand filter, making the community center eligible for an innovation credit. The organization is salvaging and reusing furniture and materials from the old building.

“It’s a very exciting, one-of-a-kind project for Quincy and the surrounding area. It’s going to be a real hub of activity,” stated Jacques Reynolds, an architect with Architechnics, a Quincy-based full-service architecture and engineering firm.

Because of the many project elements, during pre-construction and planning, S. M. Wilson helped the Salvation Army to understand the construction process and focus on one element of the project at a time. “We try to keep them focused on individual tasks instead of trying to look at the big picture. This way, it doesn’t overwhelm the owner,” explained Wille. By understanding each individual element and task of the project, it also establishes a clear understanding of each party’s expectations for the upcoming project.

Collaboration between project team members has been key to the planning of the center and will be the key to successful construction. “It’s basically been a team approach since day one. Everyone weighs in with their own unique perspective and so long as that team atmosphere is being appreciated, we’ve been able to overcome challenges,” Reynolds said.

That team approach was especially useful when S. M. Wilson offered site suggestions early in the planning to the architects. Prost claimed, “The owner chose to demolish the existing Salvation Army Headquarters and build the new Kroc Center on this site. It was a tough site due to lack of available land for expansion and restrictions due to land elevation. S. M. Wilson offered suggestions on utilities, placements of parking lots and retaining walls.” Demolition took place in the summer of 2008, construction will commence in the fall of 2009 and the project is slated for completion in the spring of 2011.

Experience Pays Off

When a recreation center is completed, the final product serves a community’s cultural, recreational and social needs, yet a lot of planning and skill is required to achieve all of the community’s goals. Recreation centers challenge design and construction professionals to create space that is both multi-purpose and inviting. However, these projects provide opportunities that inspire innovative ideas and encourage room for collaboration. The knowledge gained on each one of these recreation center projects provides future opportunities. “Every project challenge is an opportunity to learn more, and in turn, educate the owner to help the project be successful,” Wille said.