Model for ADA Design Opens in Phoenix

New Disability Services Campus Opens, Fitness Center Breaks Ground

Baldinger Architectural Studio Inc. and Caliber Construction recently completed the Disability Empowerment Center of Arizona, a complex to be utilized as a national model for accessible design. The project includes a 64,000-sq-ft office building and four-level handicap accessible parking garage.

The master-planned site will also accommodate a specialized sport and fitness center, the 44,000-sq-ft Virginia G. Piper Sports and Fitness Center, which breaks ground this month.

Disability Empowerment Campus, Phoenix, Ariz.

The DEC is a universally designed, accessible, transit-oriented, non-profit disability services campus serving the greater Phoenix area through the collaboration and partnership of the Arizona Bridge for Independent Living and similar minded disability-oriented agencies. Through the adaptive re-use of an existing 38,000-sq-ft 1970’s brick and stucco clad office building, the existing structural skeleton was retained and expanded upon to create a state-of-the-art eco-friendly facility. The dark and confined spaces of the existing building are now expanded by the use of floor to ceiling window walls, flooding the interiors with natural light. Solar shade screens on the east and west façade reduce solar heat gain and control glare. A central courtyard introduces natural light deep within the building, illuminating corridors and common spaces. Utility consumption has been minimized through the use of daylighting, low flow plumbing fixtures, indigenous landscaping and a high-efficiency centralized mechanical plant.

Interiors feature products and finishes with low emitting VOC’s, and offer safe rooms for individuals with chemical sensitivities. The building is designed around a system of barrier free interior and exterior circulation systems. Social interaction is facilitated between agencies through exterior gathering spaces, a café, common classrooms, training facilities, a 180-person conferencing center and an 8,000-sq-ft roof deck plaza overlooking the surrounding buttes. An on-site serving kitchen accommodates larger social gatherings and allows the DEC to host a variety of events specific to the disabled community.

Suntec Concrete Keeps Silverstone on Schedule

Suntec Concrete, Phoenix, has had as many as 60 crew members working onsite, six days a week to keep the aggressive pace of the construction of The Classic Residence at Silverstone by Hyatt five weeks ahead of the initial schedule because of the response to advanced sales of this luxury retirement community, located on the former Rawhide theme park site at Scottsdale and Pinnacle Peak roads. Suntec has been constructing the concrete structure that comprises the 467,857-sq-ft Main Lodge, consisting of 205 units, since June 9, 2008.

The Classic Residence at Silverstone by Hyatt, Scottsdale, Ariz. (Photo courtesy Suntec Concrete)

With general contractor Summit Builders Construction Co., Suntec has poured a total of 29,390 cu yds of concrete for the four-story Main Lodge. The concrete work was finished last month on this community which is 90% sold out. Designed by Davis and developed by The Plaza Cos., Silverstone also includes a 60-room Care Center and 67 villas surrounding the two buildings.

“The sensitive surrounding neighborhood of Silverstone made it a challenge to keep up with the fast-paced schedule,” says Mike Chappell, project manager with Suntec. “We only poured concrete after notifying all the neighbors.”

The main lodge is all cast-in-place, including a 205-space, all valet, underground parking garage. The garage was constructed first using a backfill technique, making it possible to pour an extended deck above, adding more livable space and less parking, saving overall cost for the homeowner.

Solís Scottsdale and 68th St. Gateway Approved

After more than 30 months of city processes, studies and community outreach, Scottsdale Canal Development received a 5-2 vote from the Scottsdale City Council to approve the Solís Scottsdale Resort & Residences and the 68th Street Gateway proposals.

The Council vote now makes way for the relocation of the SRP electrical substation from the intersection of Camelback and Scottsdale Roads to 68th Street and Indian School Road, where an intense beautification process and City Gateway will occur. Scottsdale Canal Development is privately funding the $20 million to update and relocate the substation, as well as the beautification of the new setting.

Solis Scottsdale Resort & Residences and the 68th Street Gateway, Scottsdale, Ariz.

The relocation of the substation also makes way for the $600 million Solís Scottsdale Resort & Residences, a LEED-certified, mixed-use development comprised of a six-story, five-star service hotel, luxury retail, residential and office space in the heart of downtown Scottsdale.

Located at the intersection of Scottsdale and Camelback Roads, Solís Scottsdale will cover 11-acres and boast more than 2,100 ft of canal frontage. The project will encompass approximately 700,000 sq ft, with the hotel to feature 250 rooms, 140 resort residences and 16 luxury sky penthouses. Plans include a spa, pool and a free-standing, high-end restaurant - adjacent to hotel and fronting on Camelback Road - as well as bistro restaurant located inside the hotel lobby area.

“Solís Scottsdale Resort and Residences is just the second Solís branded hotel in the U.S.,” says Horst Schulze, chairman and CEO of West Paces Hotels and Solís Hotels & Resorts. “We are incredibly selective of our locations and know that our partnership with Scottsdale Canal Development and Scottsdale are the right mix for creating a world-class destination.”

The Solís site will also include a landscaped, one-acre park and two pedestrian bridges over the Arizona Canal to promote community interaction and convenient walkability.

The vision for the 68th Street Gateway includes: an iconic water feature, architectural lighting, 12-ft-wall camouflaging the substation equipment and an educational component to showcase the Arizona Canal’s history and highlight downtown Scottsdale. Additionally, shaded seating areas, pedestrian walkways and landscaped open space to link the neighborhoods to Old Town are proposed.

To submit New Mexico, Arizona or Nevada news items or press releases, email the editor at scott_blair@mcgraw-hill.com.