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About BOKA Powell
BOKA Powell is dedicated to the creation of compelling, flexible, and cost effective design solutions that directly respond to the needs of our clients. Our programming, design and project management processes provide the basis for providing an extremely consistent level of service.
The definition of successful design, regardless of the project scale, extends beyond creating visually compelling design solutions. BOKA Powell’s ability to deliver a wide variety of domestic and international projects resides in our commitment to respond effectively to diverse budget, schedule, and efficiency goals, while exceeding our client’s expectations for design excellence. Our full-service architecture, planning and interior design project teams, based in Dallas, Austin, and Fort Worth, are configured to provide a consistently high level of service across all phases of a project. Our clients benefit from a team of experts with both international experience and intimate knowledge of the regions where they live and work. Each team is led by a Principal who maintains a hands-on leadership role throughout the duration of each project, giving our clients access to the programming, design and project management systems that we have refined over 35 years of practice.
Download BOKA Powell's Firm Profile (pdf) for more information regarding the services we provide, project types, our leadership and our locations.
Contact BOKA Powell:
info@bokapowell.com
Phone: 972.701.9000
For Media Inquiries, email: info@bokapowell.com
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November 3, 2010
BRYAN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- BOKA Powell LLC announced today that the company is the architect of record for a 130,000-square-foot, six-tenant clinical building on the Texas A&M Health Science Center Bryan campus. The $26 million project, being developed by Skanska HealthRealty, broke ground earlier this year and is expected to be ready for occupancy in time for fall classes in August 2011.
The unique plan will combine the Texas Brain and Spine Institute, academic units of the Texas A&M Health Science Center and the Blinn College allied health programs – including emergency medical services, nursing, physical therapy, radiology, surgical technology and respiratory therapy – within a simulated hospital. Also, St. Joseph Health System will operate a new imaging center with the region’s only 3T MRI available to the public, and the Mary Crowley Cancer Research Center will provide cancer treatment and research.
The building is designed to maximize collaboration between students and medical professionals. In order to maintain separation between the clinical and student populations, the center will have two distinct lobbies, private entrances and elevators. An ambulance simulator will be located on the second floor for training of emergency medical technicians.
“We are building a realistic facility that incorporates a very sophisticated simulation lab. Bioscience students will learn from highly technical manikins serving as patients, with real-life situations directed from a control room,” said Tom Dwyer, health care principal, BOKA Powell. “I am unaware of a model in Texas involving collaborative efforts among major educators like these.”
The new facility will serve 540 students and ensure Blinn College meets new requirements that Texas schools double their enrollment of nurses in the next five years.
BOKA Powell is the project’s architect of record and design architect and is providing strategic planning services. Skanska HealthRealty selected BOKA Powell for this project and is providing design build services, construction management and complete financing for the project.
October 11, 2010
Collin County Business Press | By Sarah Normand Kerner
Boka Powell LLC calls its latest venture an “adaptive re-use project.” To create the Frisco Discovery Center, architects Patrick Magill and Andrew Bennett took a bland, soul-less concrete mid-rise and converted it to a multi-functional space that is as engaging and visually appealing as it is functional.
About 25,000 square feet of the warehouse that originally housed Beal Aerospace has been converted into a cultural destination for the city of Frisco and North Texas. The building is now home to Frisco Arts, the 100-seat Black Box Theatre, an art gallery, and the Sci-Tech Discovery Center.
Boka Powell had creative control of the $2.4 million project, which was funded by Frisco’s Community Development Corporation and the city of Frisco.
“The challenge was that this warehouse was not some romantic, turn-of-the-century building; it was built 12 years ago with no real identity,” Bennett said. “We addressed the outside by giving it curb appeal for the city of Frisco that included an entry feature with very formal geometry that we hope people will recognize and remember.”
Inside, the architects used a “divide and conquer” approach, playing to their strengths as each tackled a different aspect of the space.
“Pat (Magill) took charge of the Sci-Tech Discovery Center portion and the personality of that space, which is more about kids, while I did the pre-function space [translation: lobby] for the Black Box Theatre,” Magill said. “If you look at the two spaces, the theatre is a little more calm and refined, but it’s a transitional space. The gallery we both worked on, and it has some formality to it, so it’s a hybrid.”
Erica Yaegar, Sci-Tech executive director, says, “Our whole mission is to provide mind-stretching fun, and the space itself is fun and is conducive to our hands-on learning experiences.”
Yaegar is particularly pleased that the space gives Sci-Tech room to house its permanent collection as well as its popular temporary exhibits. Sci-Tech has bounced from one temporary home to another (even displaying in local shopping malls) for the past several years. Having a home gives the organization roots that will help it grow, she said.
Frisco assistant city manager Ron Patterson said the performance area in the new Black Box Theatre fills a long-standing need for the city. Local theatre groups, dance troupes and other performers can now take advantage of a small, versatile space – it’s flat-floored with risers and moveable chairs – as a way to promote themselves on an intimate scale. While the city might eventually pursue some kind of larger performance hall, the Black Box Theatre answers a more immediate need, he said.
October 1, 2010
Texas Construction | By Debra Wood
High-rise construction continues, but slowing in some areas
The City of Dallas is proceeding with a new $546-million, 23-story hotel adjacent to the convention center. The city formed the Dallas Convention Center Hotel Development Corp., a Texas nonprofit local government corporation, to finance the hotel revenue bonds and build the 1.1-million-sq-ft, 1,000-room facility. Matthews Holdings Southwest of Dallas serves as the developer.
“Dallas sorely needed a hotel in conjunction with [its] convention center because [it was] losing business to other cities where a convention center hotel was available to organizers of conferences,” says Donald R. Powell Jr., a principal with BOKA Powell of Dallas, architect of record.
Not everyone supported the project due to concerns that private hotels would be at a disadvantage competing with a city-owned lodging. But a May 2009 vote by residents approved the bond sale, and the project moved forward, with design and construction kicking off at the same time.
Balfour/Russell/Pegasus, a joint venture consisting of Balfour Beatty Construction of Dallas, H.J. Russell & Co. of Atlanta and Pegasus Texas Construction of Dallas, received the $325-million, 28-month design-build contract for the Omni Dallas Convention Center Hotel in August 2009. 5G Studio Collaborative of Dallas designed the facility.
The concrete-frame building sits on a drilled-pier foundation. Steel beams allow for clear spans in the 100,000-sq-ft convention spaces. The hotel also features restaurants and a 720-space, belowground parking deck. There are four podium levels.
The interior will reflect the ambiance and diversity of Dallas.
“That gets literally translated into mirrors of highly reflective surfaces, because it’s the people that make Dallas unique,” Powell says. “Dallas has a reputation for glitz and glamour, but it also is a city with blue jeans and a counterculture.”
The project team aims for LEED-silver certification. Condenser water from the cooling towers will irrigate the site. Insulated glass windows are used in the tower, and architectural precast and glass cover the podium.
The project is tracking slightly ahead of schedule, with topping out this summer, Powell says. READ THE FULL ARTICLE
October 1, 2010
Texas Construction | By Debra Wood
“It’s part of a focused area for Austin to create new mixed-use space to have a vibrant downtown,” says Alex Gregg, senior project manager for Austin Commercial. “The city of Austin is strongly supporting downtown residential.”
After construction on Block 21 began, the original lender, Corus Bank of Chicago, was closed by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and was unable to fund the construction loan. The development team of Stratus and Canyon-Johnson Urban Funds of Los Angeles secured a replacement loan from Beal Bank Nevada, originated by its lending subsidiary, CLG Hedge Fund.
“That they were able to find it attests to the quality of the project and the ownership,” Gregg says.
The 1-million-sq-ft Block 21 features 159 luxury residential units from levels 18 through 37; 252 rooms in a W Hotel on floors six through 16; a 2,200-seat, four-story performance venue and studio for Austin City Limits; 18,000 sq ft of retail and restaurants; 37,000 sq ft of office space; a fourth-level pool and spa deck, with separate areas for hotel guests and residents; and three levels of below-grade parking with 485 spaces.
Andersson-Wise Architects of Austin and BOKA Powell collaborated on the job.
“The interior is Bohemian, a diverse mix of traditional materials with an Austin flare and modern, clean polished materials—wood, stone, glass, metal, steel and concrete,” says Dennis Gulseth, project manager for BOKA Powell. “Through the entire project, they are using raw materials with polished and refined materials, such as exposed concrete and steel next to polished stone, wall treatments and glass.”
A drilled-pier foundation, reaching to depths from 40 to 60 ft, supports the post-tensioned concrete structure. A Swisspearl cement-composite rain-screen panel, manufactured in Switzerland, clads the lower podium levels and a modular metal panel and glass curtain-wall system the tower.
“The Swisspearl panels are a new product to this area,” Gregg says. “It’s sleek.”
The team is striving for LEED-silver certification. The property is within Austin’s water loop system. The project received brownfield credits for excavating soil contaminated with perchlorethylene, likely due to a former dry-cleaning establishment, and selenium. Large water tanks collect rainwater for use in irrigation on the podium and the building’s sides.
The project remains on track for a December opening of the hotel and spring move-ins for the condominium buyers. About 60% of the condo units have sold, Barnes says.
“The condominium sales have been brisk as compared to other projects as a result of the hotel amenities,” Powell says. “Condominium owners are looking for food service, maid service, hotel-support amenities. And you will hear this story on the 98 San Jacinto, which is connected to the Four Seasons. Both of these residential towers benefit from the hotel amenity package.”
John Orfield, BOKA Powell principal on the $125-million, 32-story 98 San Jacinto/Four Seasons Residences project in Austin, adds that condominium buyers also favor the hotel connection because they believe it will help the unit hold its value over the long term.
The Four Seasons Residences also broke ground before the economy soured. Lyda Swinerton Builders of San Antonio began the 148-unit, 425,537-sq-ft project in June 2008 for Ardent Residential of Austin and finished it two years later. The project includes some first-floor retail to reinforce the urban flavor, Orfield says.
Designed by Michael Graves & Associates of New York, the concrete-frame building sits on a drilled-pier foundation, reaching to about 65 ft. Architectural precast concrete and an aluminum window-wall system clad the upper floors and brick the lower levels. BOKA Powell serves as architect of record.
Orfield says that flat-plate concrete works well in a residential environment and the sound deadening of concrete is superior to steel.
The project should wrap up this fall. Residents are moving into some units as the building receives floor-by-floor certificates of occupancy.
July 23, 2010
Dallas Business Journal | By Bill Hethcock Staff Writer
FOREST PARK FRISCO: The doctor-owned hospital focuses on patient comfort as much as patient care. The design includes a fountain out front, and a lobby that feels more like a hotel than a hospital.
Doctors and developers plan to build an $83 million physician-owned hospital in Frisco — one of the first such facilities in North Texas to proceed under health care reforms that are changing the rules for projects of that type.
Construction is scheduled to start in the fourth quarter of this year on the 50-bed Forest Park Medical Center at Frisco, and the facility will be complete by mid-2012, said Derrick Evers, managing partner of Dallas-based Neal Richards Group, the project manager and developer.
The project in the Frisco Square mixed-use development will include a 128,000-square-foot acute care hospital, an 80,000-square-foot medical office/retail building and a five-level parking garage, Evers said. The four-level hospital will have 40 inpatient rooms including 14 VIP suites, 10 intensive care beds and an emergency room.
BOKA Powell is the architect and Balfour Beatty will be the contractor.
“We feel like we’ve really assembled an A-team for this project,” Evers said.
The hospital will be about 70 percent doctor-owned, Evers said. Many of the physician-investors will be the same owners involved in building Forest Park Medical Center in Dallas, according to documents the investors filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Doctor-owned hospitals have been popular in North Texas, with about 30 in the region, sources say. The new facility will employ about 300, said Mac Burt, CEO and managing partner of Forest Park Medical Center in Dallas and manager of Forest Park Medical Center at Frisco LLC.
The Frisco hospital will be among the first in North Texas built under a new health insurance reform law that adds restrictions for physician-owned hospitals, said Bobby Hillert, executive director of the Texas Physician Hospitals Advocacy Center. The federal legislation, passed in March, severely limits Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements to new doctor-owned hospitals and existing ones that expand.
The reform law will swell the number of insured under the federal programs while creating obstacles to construction of new hospitals, Hillert said.
“The new health care law is ironic because it will not improve access for patients,” he said. “This is the most important time for our state to be building new hospitals.”
Burt said the law will prohibit the Frisco hospital from billing Medicare or Medicaid for patients admitted or referred to the hospital by a doctor with an ownership interest in the hospital. The hospital will be able to bill the federal programs for patients who enter through the emergency room or are referred to the hospital by non-owning physicians, he said.
That means almost all of the hospital’s revenue will come from private insurance and patients’ out-of-pocket payments, Burt said.
Frisco Square is a 147-acre masterplanned development at the intersection of the Dallas North Tollway and Frisco’s Main Street. It has a mix of retail and office space, hotel rooms, apartments and municipal facilities.
A typical acute-care hospital without physician owners in a place with Frisco’s young, high-income demographic would receive 15 percent to 20 percent of its revenue from Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement, Burt estimated. Hospitals in inner-city areas and areas with older patients might rely on the reimbursements for up to 70 percent, he said.
“We really anticipate to have almost nothing from the (Medicare/Medicaid) standpoint,” Burt said.
July 23, 2010
Austin Business Journal | By Sandra Zaragoza ABJ Staff
Developers are slowly concluding that green medical construction and design may be just what the doctor ordered when it comes to the health care sector.
Sustainable architecture and design can impact many aspects of health care, including patient satisfaction, nurse retention, medical outcomes and financial performance, according to the Green Guide for Health Care, an initiative that provides guidelines and resources for that sector.
Trends in construction suggest the health care sector will be an important target for those offering energy-efficient measures moving forward, primarily because hosptials require huge amounts of energy to serve patients around the clock.
Health care construction had been on an upward swing since 2000, although it slowed in recent times because of the recession. The nation will continue to need medical facilities to accommodate population growth and aging baby boomers.
Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas has helped make Austin a leader nationally in green medical construction. Seton Family of Hospitals’ planning paid off in 2008, when the children’s hospital became the first in the world to receive LEED Platinum certification. LEED is short for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. TBG Architects & Planners Inc. of Oregon and White Construction Co. of Austin were on the hospital’s design and construction team.
Dell Children’s Medical Center’s reasons for pursuing LEED standards went beyond environmental concerns, CEO Robert Bonar said when the hospital received its platinum certification.
“Being a green hospital has a profound, measurable effect on healing,” he said. “What’s good for the environment and good for our Mueller neighbors is also good for our patients.”
Health care building decision makers also recognize the barriers to sustainable design, including cost, as energy-efficient measures often require an initial investment. Decision makers may also be concerned about time and additional staff training that energy-efficient equipment might require.
Incorporating green elements in a building typically adds 2 to 3 percent to a project’s price, experts said.
On the other hand, efficiency program administrators said saving energy has the potential to dramatically improve a hospital’s bottom line. Energy Star estimates that each $1 of energy saving is equivalent to $20 of increased revenue for a hospital.
Still, the number of green hospital projects is relatively small. Four Texas hospitals are registered with the Green Guide for Health Care, out of 232 hospitals on its current list.
Tom Dwyer, head of architectural firm Boka Powell’s health care design practice, said hospitals and other types medical facilities can gain a lot from green building strategies. But he said it is more challenging because of the high energy consumption inherent in health care facilities.
“Hospitals are probably the most difficult type to make green because they run 24-7 at tremendous usage,” Dwyer said.
Each hospital has unique energy-use requirements, depending on the types of surgical and imaging facilities it provides. These facilities need lighting and heating 24 hours a day, as well as energy for equipment, sterilization, laundry and food preparation.
Even if clients aren’t asking for green design, most architects and designers start with those principles in mind, said Sean Kirton, a designer for Boka Powell.
Dwyer and Kirton said their approach to each medical project, whether or not a client is seeking a green designation, is to reduce the total energy a building consumes.
Reducing energy consumption can be achieved with simple strategies, such as switching to fluorescent light bulbs, which can save $1 to $2 per square foot per year, Dwyer said. Lighting accounts for the second-largest percentage, 25 percent, of a typical hospital’s energy bill, after heating and air conditioning at 45 percent.
A hospital’s water systems are also a critical area for greening.
Another trend in green health care design is integrating medical facilities into a town center concept, said Rebecca Leonard, principal of DesignWorkshop.
“All of this is greening because it makes it more walkable for people,” she said. “They don’t have to get in their cars for lunch every day.”
July 20, 2010
Dallas Business Journal | By Bill Hethcock Staff Writer
The interior design team for the Omni Dallas Convention Center Hotel wants the facility to reflect the city it’s in. So team members are installing large mirrors and metallic finishes throughout.
They want tourists and conventioneers to know where they stand when they’re in Big D. So they’re weaving map-like patterns of Dallas’ road network into the rugs.
They want folks to know the larger-than-life people who built the city. So they’re hanging supersized portraits of industry titans and city pioneers in common areas.
Figuratively and literally, the designers are infusing the city’s people and places into the $500 million city-owned facility, said Reggi Nichols, principal with Vivian|Nichols Associates, the Dallas-based interior architectural design firm. The challenge, she said, is to meld Dallas’ glitz, polish and sophistication -— its tuxedo-in-the-Arts-District side -— with its bluejeans-in-the-Farmer’s-Market side.
“It’s a snapshot of Dallas,” Nichols said. “If you come to Dallas and you’re in conferences and you never really get to go out, the artwork and the interior will make you think you have had a taste of Dallas. It’s almost like a walking tour.”
The Farmer’s Market was the inspiration for the hotel’s main restaurant, which will have reclaimed wood floors, brick-interior walls and communal tables, where people can share a meal with friends or strangers, she said. Other restaurants will include a sports bar with a 220-inch television, and a Bob’s Steak & Chop House, a Dallas institution.
A large mirror in a gathering area will be etched with the Dallas skyline, allowing visitors to “see themselves” in the city, Nichols said. Large area rugs will have abstract patterns inspired by aerial maps of the highways downtown and in the “High Five” overpass network. Subtle patterns resembling the city’s skyline will be infused into the ballroom floor.
Most meeting rooms will face out and provide sweeping views of the city, Nichols said. Larger-than-life portraits of Dallasites such as El Fenix restaurant chain founder Mike Martinez will hang on the walls.
Omni, the hotel’s operator, wants the facilities it operates to reflect the cities in which they exist, said Don Powell, a principal for Dallas-based BOKA Powell, the project’s lead architect.
Each of the hotel’s 1,001 guest rooms will have its own art collection of up to seven pieces, created by local artists and offered for sale. Unlike the case in many large hotels, the art collection and decor will be different in each room, said Dennis Gulseth, the project manager in charge of the hotel’s interior for BOKA Powell.
“This won’t be your typical convention center hotel,” Gulseth said. “It’s more of a 1,000-room boutique hotel.”
Interior construction has begun, with drywall installation starting next week, said Joseph Hilliard, project manager and BOKA Powell principal. The hotel is scheduled for completion by February 2012. Construction is on schedule, he said.
The weight of aesthetics
Aesthetics and interior design, along with location and service, play a role in attracting conventioneers and other travelers, Gulseth, Hilliard and Nichols said.
The Hilton Anatole, a future competitor to the Dallas Omni, is about halfway through a $25 million renovation of its atrium, said Jay Best, the hotel’s marketing director. It’s the final piece of a $100 million “transformation” of the 1,606-room hotel over the past two years, Best said.
The hotel has redesigned its Asian-inspired guest rooms, added two lounges and a restaurant and renovated the ballroom. Now it’s updating the atrium into a park-like Zen garden with reflecting pool and a big kinetic sculpture suspended overhead, said interior designer Jennifer Johanson, principal of EDG Design.
The look and the function of interiors are increasingly important in catching the attention of convention planners and other potential guests, she said.
“Aesthetics are something that people look to more and more,” Johanson said. “Everybody is very design-savvy.”
Best said he views the Omni as “a friend and an enemy.” Having a hotel connected to the convention center is important for luring large national conventions — which can attract as many as 25,000 people — but the two hotels will compete.
The other major competitors for convention business include the Sheraton and Hyatt Regency in Dallas and the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine, he said.
It’s crucial for North Texas hotels to have an updated appearance to compete against cities such as Orlando, Las Vegas and Chicago for large conventions, he said.
“Aesthetics play an importance in competitiveness around the country,” Best said.
bhethcock@bizjournals.com | 214-706-7125
September 2010
Designed by BOKA Powell Architects, Barton Place is a six-story, multi-building condominium complex located south of downtown Austin. Six buildings and an elevated plaza landscaped with native plants rest above a two-level underground parking garage. Central to the project is a 100-foot tall pecan tree. The parking garage and buildings are situated around the tree’s root ball so that it was not disturbed during or after construction. The 300,000 sf condominium complex is sited near Zilker Park and Barton Springs, two very popular inner-city public amenities. In addition, the site connects to the adjacent Lady Bird Lake hike-and-bike trail and restaurants across the street. The Hill Country modern architecture features an energy-efficient stone, glass, concrete, and stucco exterior with floor-to-ceiling glass and locally sourced masonry. A pool, outdoor kitchen and lounge, four rooftop terraces, and a fitness center/yoga studio complete the program. The project, scheduled for completion in November, is seeking a rating with the city of Austin green building program.
By Noelle Heinze
September 2010
Finding money for MOBs is challenging, but it can be done.
It’s a familiar refrain: private capital for real estate development is practically impossible to get. That conventional wisdom is just as true for medical multi-purpose and office buildings as it is for retail and commercial projects. But for those willing to invest significant time, energy and money to assemble deals that eliminate virtually all the risk that was so common just a few years ago, there is, in fact, plenty of capital available. Those in control of that money are more than eager to get it off the sidelines and put it into play.
The Texas A&M Health Science Center Medical Office Building in Bryan (pictured to the left) was designed by BOKA Powell.
What are the keys to making the deal happen? Patience, persistence and tenants with excellent credit who are willing to partner with you to make it work are important. The Texas A&M Health Science Center Medical Office Building now under construction in Bryan is a case in point. This 130,000-square-foot, Class A building, which is set for completion next summer, represents a truly unique public-private partnership. It also provides valuable lessons for anyone struggling to make a medical office project happen in this challenging financial environment.
The tenants in the new Texas A&M building form a diverse cross-section of medical organizations, but, more important, each has great credit. Their commitments to be a part of the project made it possible to negotiate very favorable debt financing and helped attract equity investment in the project. In short, great tenants with great credit mean lower risk for lenders and investors. In today’s economy, reducing risk is Job One.
One key factor in attracting tenants, investors and lenders is a developer with very deep resources. Investors, tenants and lenders are searching for the comfort of low-risk deals; that’s the result of the financial turmoil of the past couple of years. Knowing that a big, credible player with an impeccable balance sheet is backing the deal goes a long way to providing all the players with good reason to believe their risk is minimized.
Of course, it’s not easy to assemble a deal that is virtually risk-free. That’s why Lesson 3 is critical.
If it were easy, this kind of project would be popping up all over, but it’s not easy. It takes time, patience and persistence. You have to be willing to invest the time – likely a year or more – to build the relationships necessary to gain the commitments of high-quality tenants, investors and lenders. Keeping in mind that prospective medical office tenants are just as nervous as anyone else about the future, many of them will not be willing to commit to moving into your building. The more you can credibly demonstrate that you have absolutely minimized risk and that the project is on very solid financial ground, the more likely your prospective tenants will be to sign on. In turn, these commitments will impress investors and lenders.
If you’re the developer, you still have risk, of course, because you’re the one who has to invest a year or more of time to build the relationships and pull all the parties together. The payoff, however, thanks to all of this heavy lifting up front, will be a project with very little risk once all the contracts are signed.
The medical office building market is ripe for more public-private partnerships. State governments, public universities and healthcare systems are all running very short on capital and have little or no borrowing capacity. A creative, well-planned public-private partnership gets them the new buildings they need and they become tenants rather than owners, which keeps the costs off their balance sheets. It’s a great way to provide these institutions with access to capital at a time when many of them have no other options.
— Jeff Brown is a partner with Skanska HealthRealty and is based in College Station.
September 1, 2010 - The Dallas Morning News | By Steve Brown
The 25,000-square-foot property on Dallas Parkway is being renovated into the Frisco Discovery Center, an arts, education and cultural center. The new facility opens in early October.
BOKA Powell’s plans for the concrete warehouse building transformation included creating a new entryway and redoing the façade in “Frisco red.”
The discovery center was created in part of an empty 150,000-square-foot industrial building that previously housed a rocket maker.
The Frisco Community Development Corporation funded the project.
July 23, 2010
Dallas Business Journal | By Bill Hethcock Staff Writer
FOREST PARK FRISCO: The doctor-owned hospital focuses on patient comfort as much as patient care. The design includes a fountain out front, and a lobby that feels more like a hotel than a hospital. Doctors and developers plan to build an $83 million physician-owned hospital in Frisco — one of the first such facilities in North Texas to proceed under health care reforms that are changing the rules for projects of that type.
Construction is scheduled to start in the fourth quarter of this year on the 50-bed Forest Park Medical Center at Frisco, and the facility will be complete by mid-2012, said Derrick Evers, managing partner of Dallas-based Neal Richards Group, the project manager and developer.
The project in the Frisco Square mixed-use development will include a 128,000-square-foot acute care hospital, an 80,000-square-foot medical office/retail building and a five-level parking garage, Evers said. The four-level hospital will have 40 inpatient rooms including 14 VIP suites, 10 intensive care beds and an emergency room.
BOKA Powell is the architect and Balfour Beatty will be the contractor.
“We feel like we’ve really assembled an A-team for this project,” Evers said.
The hospital will be about 70 percent doctor-owned, Evers said. Many of the physician-investors will be the same owners involved in building Forest Park Medical Center in Dallas, according to documents the investors filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Doctor-owned hospitals have been popular in North Texas, with about 30 in the region, sources say. The new facility will employ about 300, said Mac Burt, CEO and managing partner of Forest Park Medical Center in Dallas and manager of Forest Park Medical Center at Frisco LLC.
The Frisco hospital will be among the first in North Texas built under a new health insurance reform law that adds restrictions for physician-owned hospitals, said Bobby Hillert, executive director of the Texas Physician Hospitals Advocacy Center. The federal legislation, passed in March, severely limits Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements to new doctor-owned hospitals and existing ones that expand.
The reform law will swell the number of insured under the federal programs while creating obstacles to construction of new hospitals, Hillert said.
“The new health care law is ironic because it will not improve access for patients,” he said. “This is the most important time for our state to be building new hospitals.”
Burt said the law will prohibit the Frisco hospital from billing Medicare or Medicaid for patients admitted or referred to the hospital by a doctor with an ownership interest in the hospital. The hospital will be able to bill the federal programs for patients who enter through the emergency room or are referred to the hospital by non-owning physicians, he said.
That means almost all of the hospital’s revenue will come from private insurance and patients’ out-of-pocket payments, Burt said.
Frisco Square is a 147-acre masterplanned development at the intersection of the Dallas North Tollway and Frisco’s Main Street. It has a mix of retail and office space, hotel rooms, apartments and municipal facilities.
A typical acute-care hospital without physician owners in a place with Frisco’s young, high-income demographic would receive 15 percent to 20 percent of its revenue from Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement, Burt estimated. Hospitals in inner-city areas and areas with older patients might rely on the reimbursements for up to 70 percent, he said.
“We really anticipate to have almost nothing from the (Medicare/Medicaid) standpoint,” Burt said
.July 23, 2010
Austin Business Journal | By Sandra Zaragoza ABJ Staff
Developers are slowly concluding that green medical construction and design may be just what the doctor ordered when it comes to the health care sector.
Sustainable architecture and design can impact many aspects of health care, including patient satisfaction, nurse retention, medical outcomes and financial performance, according to the Green Guide for Health Care, an initiative that provides guidelines and resources for that sector.
Trends in construction suggest the health care sector will be an important target for those offering energy-efficient measures moving forward, primarily because hosptials require huge amounts of energy to serve patients around the clock.
Health care construction had been on an upward swing since 2000, although it slowed in recent times because of the recession. The nation will continue to need medical facilities to accommodate population growth and aging baby boomers.
Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas has helped make Austin a leader nationally in green medical construction. Seton Family of Hospitals’ planning paid off in 2008, when the children’s hospital became the first in the world to receive LEED Platinum certification. LEED is short for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. TBG Architects & Planners Inc. of Oregon and White Construction Co. of Austin were on the hospital’s design and construction team.
Dell Children’s Medical Center’s reasons for pursuing LEED standards went beyond environmental concerns, CEO Robert Bonar said when the hospital received its platinum certification.
“Being a green hospital has a profound, measurable effect on healing,” he said. “What’s good for the environment and good for our Mueller neighbors is also good for our patients.”
Health care building decision makers also recognize the barriers to sustainable design, including cost, as energy-efficient measures often require an initial investment. Decision makers may also be concerned about time and additional staff training that energy-efficient equipment might require.
Incorporating green elements in a building typically adds 2 to 3 percent to a project’s price, experts said.
On the other hand, efficiency program administrators said saving energy has the potential to dramatically improve a hospital’s bottom line. Energy Star estimates that each $1 of energy saving is equivalent to $20 of increased revenue for a hospital.
Still, the number of green hospital projects is relatively small. Four Texas hospitals are registered with the Green Guide for Health Care, out of 232 hospitals on its current list.
Tom Dwyer, head of architectural firm Boka Powell’s health care design practice, said hospitals and other types medical facilities can gain a lot from green building strategies. But he said it is more challenging because of the high energy consumption inherent in health care facilities.
“Hospitals are probably the most difficult type to make green because they run 24-7 at tremendous usage,” Dwyer said.
Each hospital has unique energy-use requirements, depending on the types of surgical and imaging facilities it provides. These facilities need lighting and heating 24 hours a day, as well as energy for equipment, sterilization, laundry and food preparation.
Even if clients aren’t asking for green design, most architects and designers start with those principles in mind, said Sean Kirton, a designer for Boka Powell.
Dwyer and Kirton said their approach to each medical project, whether or not a client is seeking a green designation, is to reduce the total energy a building consumes.
Reducing energy consumption can be achieved with simple strategies, such as switching to fluorescent light bulbs, which can save $1 to $2 per square foot per year, Dwyer said. Lighting accounts for the second-largest percentage, 25 percent, of a typical hospital’s energy bill, after heating and air conditioning at 45 percent.
A hospital’s water systems are also a critical area for greening.
Another trend in green health care design is integrating medical facilities into a town center concept, said Rebecca Leonard, principal of DesignWorkshop.
“All of this is greening because it makes it more walkable for people,” she said. “They don’t have to get in their cars for lunch every day.”
July 20, 2010
Dallas Business Journal | By Bill Hethcock Staff Writer
Interior design combines Dallas’ signature glitz with comfortable charm.
The interior design team for the Omni Dallas Convention Center Hotel wants the facility to reflect the city it’s in. So team members are installing large mirrors and metallic finishes throughout.
They want tourists and conventioneers to know where they stand when they’re in Big D. So they’re weaving map-like patterns of Dallas’ road network into the rugs.
They want folks to know the larger-than-life people who built the city. So they’re hanging supersized portraits of industry titans and city pioneers in common areas.
Figuratively and literally, the designers are infusing the city’s people and places into the $500 million city-owned facility, said Reggi Nichols, principal with Vivian|Nichols Associates, the Dallas-based interior architectural design firm. The challenge, she said, is to meld Dallas’ glitz, polish and sophistication -— its tuxedo-in-the-Arts-District side -— with its bluejeans-in-the-Farmer’s-Market side.
“It’s a snapshot of Dallas,” Nichols said. “If you come to Dallas and you’re in conferences and you never really get to go out, the artwork and the interior will make you think you have had a taste of Dallas.
It’s almost like a walking tour.”
The Farmer’s Market was the inspiration for the hotel’s main restaurant, which will have reclaimed wood floors, brick-interior walls and communal tables, where people can share a meal with friends or strangers, she said. Other restaurants will include a sports bar with a 220-inch television, and a Bob’s Steak & Chop House, a Dallas institution.
A large mirror in a gathering area will be etched with the Dallas skyline, allowing visitors to “see themselves” in the city, Nichols said. Large area rugs will have abstract patterns inspired by aerial maps of the highways downtown and in the “High Five” overpass network. Subtle patterns resembling the city’s skyline will be infused into the ballroom floor.
Most meeting rooms will face out and provide sweeping views of the city, Nichols said. Larger-than-life portraits of Dallasites such as El Fenix restaurant chain founder Mike Martinez will hang on the walls.
Omni, the hotel’s operator, wants the facilities it operates to reflect the cities in which they exist, said Don Powell, a principal for Dallas-based BOKA Powell, the project’s lead architect.
Each of the hotel’s 1,001 guest rooms will have its own art collection of up to seven pieces, created by local artists and offered for sale. Unlike the case in many large hotels, the art collection and decor will be different in each room, said Dennis Gulseth, the project manager in charge of the hotel’s interior for BOKA Powell.
“This won’t be your typical convention center hotel,” Gulseth said. “It’s more of a 1,000-room boutique hotel.”
Interior construction has begun, with drywall installation starting next week, said Joseph Hilliard, project manager and BOKA Powell principal. The hotel is scheduled for completion by February 2012. Construction is on schedule, he said.
The weight of aesthetics
Aesthetics and interior design, along with location and service, play a role in attracting conventioneers and other travelers, Gulseth, Hilliard and Nichols said.
The Hilton Anatole, a future competitor to the Dallas Omni, is about halfway through a $25 million renovation of its atrium, said Jay Best, the hotel’s marketing director. It’s the final piece of a $100 million “transformation” of the 1,606-room hotel over the past two years, Best said.
The hotel has redesigned its Asian-inspired guest rooms, added two lounges and a restaurant and renovated the ballroom. Now it’s updating the atrium into a park-like Zen garden with reflecting pool and a big kinetic sculpture suspended overhead, said interior designer Jennifer Johanson, principal of EDG Design.
The look and the function of interiors are increasingly important in catching the attention of convention planners and other potential guests, she said.
“Aesthetics are something that people look to more and more,” Johanson said. “Everybody is very design-savvy.”
Best said he views the Omni as “a friend and an enemy.” Having a hotel connected to the convention center is important for luring large national conventions — which can attract as many as 25,000 people — but the two hotels will compete.
The other major competitors for convention business include the Sheraton and Hyatt Regency in Dallas and the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine, he said.
It’s crucial for North Texas hotels to have an updated appearance to compete against cities such as Orlando, Las Vegas and Chicago for large conventions, he said.
“Aesthetics play an importance in competitiveness around the country,” Best said.
bhethcock@bizjournals.com | 214-706-7125
July 15, 2010
"Phoenix" Prototype in Northlake, Texas, Gains Respected Green Certification
DALLAS, Texas - Motel 6, known for providing guests with a clean, comfortable room for the lowest price of any national chain, has proven that green lodging does not have to be expensive lodging. The brand’s newest property in Northlake, Texas, is the first economy hotel in the nation to attain LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and the first hotel for parent company Accor to gain the distinction.
“With the brand’s ‘Phoenix’ prototype, we are setting the pace for the future of Motel 6, which, in line with our values, must be as energy-efficient as possible,” said Olivier Poirot, CEO of Accor North America, Motel 6 and Studio 6. “LEED’s® high environmental standards lend a great deal of credence to our efforts, and we look forward to continuing on the path to greater sustainable practices in the future.”
According to the USGBC, LEED® certification provides “third-party verification that a building or community was designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across all the metrics that matter most: energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts.”
Opened in October 2009, Motel 6 Northlake-Speedway adheres to Accor North America’s ongoing sustainable initiatives like the use of technologically-advanced heating and cooling systems, Fluorescent Light Bulb and Battery Recycling Program and water conservation measures, and also includes advanced energy efficiency features that further reduce its energy consumption compared to existing Motel 6 properties. Some of these advanced environmentally-friendly measures include:
Since its introduction in March 2008, the award-winning Motel 6 “Phoenix” room design has been incorporated into more than 70 of Motel 6’s existing corporate-owned and franchised locations in more than 20 U.S. markets. Guestroom features include a modern, Euro-chic design by Priestmangoode of London, 32” flat-screen TVs, wood-effect flooring, granite bathroom countertops, and a comfortable settee area conducive for eating, working, or watching TV. The design won Travel + Leisure magazine’s 2010 Design Award for “Best Large Hotel.”
Motel 6 Northlake-Speedway features the building design by BOKA Powell of Dallas and a 24-hour food and beverage marketplace. Motel 6 Northlake-Speedway is located at 13601 Raceway Drive in Northlake, Texas, diagonally across from Texas Motor Speedway and just a short distance from Alliance Airport. To view or download images of the property’s interior, click here.
YouTube - July 7, 2010
June 7, 2010
Fort Worth Business Press | By Aleshia Howe
There’s a new term being tossed around the commercial real estate industry that’s starting to move property in Fort Worth – and that term is re-purposing.
As the amount of vacant retail, restaurant and office buildings has started to mount throughout Tarrant County, the practice of re-purposing some of the buildings for other uses is picking up steam.
Two of the latest local examples are the former Luby’s restaurant at 251 University Drive and the former Quicksilver Resources Inc. headquarters at 777 Rosedale St., which are both destined for medical space.
Jerry Huffman, founder of Plano-based Huffman Builders, bought the shuttered Luby’s building from River Districts LLC on June 1 with plans to convert the space into a physicians’ clinic and dialysis center. And according to Ryan Matthews, vice president at Jones Lang LaSalle Americas Inc., there is a contract on the former Quicksilver building to use the space as a medical office building.
An emerging trend throughout the nation’s beleaguered commercial real estate market, re-purposing can include turning a former office space or retail space – especially national retailers that have shuttered all stores – into a new use.
Advantages of re-purposing include reduced costs in utility connections, reduced construction costs and a shorter construction schedule. Rather than razing an existing building and building a new one from scratch, developers can re-use all or some of the building’s foundations, external shell, and mechanical or electrical systems.
Don Powell Jr., principal at BOKA Powell architecture firm, said his company recently wrapped up the conversion of a former San Antonio mall into a massive office space for Rackspace hosting company.
“Generally what we’re finding is lots of big box stores, some of them connected to shopping malls, others free standing big box, we’re seeing converted into office or medical use,” Powell said. “Rackspace in San Antonio was a vacated mall with 1.3 million square feet. The building was in pretty good space and Rackspace had outgrown its existing offices … the mall was a good conversion that brought a zombie building back to a productive life.”
Powell said his company is seeing a demand for such conversions based purely on cost – thanks to the smattering of bank-owned and foreclosed properties dotting Texas. Since it is a re-purpose, though, Powell said each project presents its own obstacles.
“Because a typical retail building doesn’t have the infrastructure for mechanical, electric plumbing needs of an office, we added an 18-inch raised floor for Rackspace for power, telephones, data distribution,” he said. “That’s just one example of how we’re seeing this vacated retail be converted, though.”
Powell said retail buildings near malls can easily be converted because most have ample parking to meet the needs of a medical or office facility. On a cost scale, Powell said converting retail to office space is generally the least expensive re-purposing strategy, followed by converting retail to medical space.
Pat McDowell, senior vice president at Jones Lang LaSalle Americas Inc., said his company has seen more local interest in converting space for medical use than any other use. The former Luby’s property, he said, was attractive as a medical facility because of its proximity to nearby osteopathic facilities on Camp Bowie Boulevard.
“We are seeing more of this because of the high cost per square foot to build a new medical facility,” he said. “If you can buy a building for $90, $110, $130 per square foot and put in some additional funds to retrofit that space for medical use or office, it’s still well below what it would cost to build.”
McDowell said the re-purposing his company is seeing, however, is completely driven by location.
“Construction costs are still pretty high for medical related uses so it makes a lot of sense to take retail or office and convert it for medical use and that’s what we’re seeing near hospitals or in medical districts,” he said. “… I think we’re seeing more of it now because everybody is conscience of their costs and exit strategies. If a doctor can come in and get the property for a lower basis, then after it’s converted they have the opportunity to make money on it on the exit side.”
Matthews said the conversion of the Luby’s building on University Drive to medical space breathes new life into the remaining 2.5 acres abutting the site, which is still up for sale.
“Any time you can get some activity is great, but taking a boarded up Luby’s and putting quite a bit of money in there will help,” he said. “We could see someone come along and want to add more medical use there, or we could see a retailer that wants to be near that medical space. Either way, it’s helping.”
May 31, 2010
Fort Worth Business Press | By Elizabeth Bassett
The JPS Health Network and Texas firm BOKA Powell LLC are partnering to do a full assessment of the health system’s capabilities and future potential in order to create a long-term plan to open access in the face of health reform, a growing community and changing patient demands.
The Tarrant County health system awarded BOKA Powell, which has offices in Dallas, Fort Worth and Austin, the contract, which is not to exceed $1.2 million, in May. The assessment and plan will include information from a strategic analysis as well as the results from the Community Needs Assessment, which JPS expects to unveil in June at its next board of managers meeting, said Scott Rule, vice president of planning and analysis for the JPS Health Network.
“What we really tried to do was a bifurcated study,” Rule said.
Not only will BOKA Powell and the firms it uses as consultants look at everything JPS has now in the way of services, volume, costs and facilities, but the Community Needs Assessment will bring information about where patients are coming from, what their demographics are and what they need in terms of medical care, Rule said.
JPS has grown significantly over the past several years, including the summer 2008 opening of its Patient Care Pavilion and its recent designation as a Level I Trauma Center in addition to opening more School-Based Health Centers and other health centers and specialty clinics.
However, this contract will give JPS a better plan for the entire system and community and will be a tool long into the future, Rule said.
“Quite frankly, I think this is a different approach and a different level of planning and introspection than what has been done in the past,” he said. “This is much more long-term, much more holistic.”
Tom Dwyer, health care principal at BOKA Powell, said the people at JPS his firm has worked with seem enthusiastic to create a guiding plan and then to use it to continue improving patient care.
“The worst thing I can do as a consultant is give someone a plan they just put on the shelf and never look at,” he said.
The Community Needs Assessment, started in the fall of 2009 by Charlotte, N.C.-based Premier Inc., will give the plan more patient-centered information, which will become increasingly important as health insurance reforms, prompted by the federal law passed earlier this year, go into effect, Dwyer said.
“We are very interested in where the capacity for the system is and how that overlay of community needs works out,” he said.
Other BOKA Powell health care clients also have an eye on health reform and the changes it can mean for the number of patients served at a facility and what services those patients will be seeking, Dwyer said.
As patients gain more choice in the health industry, quality is going to become increasingly important, Rule said, and JPS wants to be the medical home of choice for county residents. JPS is unique in some ways — such as its large network of school centers, its trauma center and the specific health needs of the community — but it is facing the same challenges as other community hospitals, which need to fill a large and growing demand for quality services, he said.
The BOKA Powell analysis is expected to be completed well within a year of its announcement date, Rule said, but he expects leadership at the health system will be able to use parts of it as it is completed. The system is on an Oct. 1 to Sept. 30 fiscal year calendar, he said, and he believes some information will be ready to use in the next year.
“I am certain that we’ll have benefits from the study that will be available to us by the next fiscal year,” he said.
May 23, 2010
Star Telegram | By Sandra Baker
BOKA Powell is preparing a facilities utilization analysis and plan for the JPS Health Network, which includes a hospital, Level I trauma center and more than 50 health centers, school-based programs and specialty clinics throughout Tarrant County, the architecture, planning and interior design firm said.
The plan is being done to ensure that JPS meets the needs of the community in the coming decades, the firm said.
Scott Rule of the health network said, "Enlisting BOKA Powell for this facilities analysis will enable us to prioritize and plan for not only existing population levels, but for the expected growth of the county long term." Rule is vice president for planning and analysis at JPS Health Network.
The plan, which will take about a year to complete, will provide an analysis of locations and buildings and development opportunities surrounding the main campus.
It will address community demographics and medical needs and will propose a timeline for implementation, BOKA Powell said.
"JPS Health Network is preparing in advance for an increase in patients due to the new health legislation and population boom in the North Texas region," said Tom Dwyer, healthcare principal at BOKA Powell.
BOKA Powell is working with area consultants on this project, including Innovative Developers for real estate planning, MEP Consulting Engineers, Jaster-Quintanilla for civil and structural engineering, MESA Design Group for urban land planning and Smith Hager Bajo, an expert on women and children.
May 13, 2010
Dallas Business Journal | By Kerri Panchuk Web Reporter
JPS Health Network is partnering with architectural firm BOKA Powell to prepare Tarrant County's tax-supported health system for an influx of patients tied to population growth and health care reform.
Dallas-based BOKA Powell is reviewing the network’s facilities utilization plan to help JPS determine how it will utilize its hospital, 50 health centers and specialty clinics.
“Enlisting BOKA Powell for this facilities analysis will enable us to prioritize and plan for not only existing population levels, but for the expected growth of the county long term,” said Scott Rule, vice president of planning and analysis for JPS.
The plan will be completed in about a year and will offer JPS insights on how to utilize current space and tap into development opportunities around the main JPS campus.
Other consultants tapped for the project include Innovative Developers Inc., MEP Consulting Engineers, Jaster-Quintanilla, MESA Design Group and Smith Hager Bajo.
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February 26, 2010
Dallas Business Journal | By Karen Nielsen
When the Omni Dallas Convention Center Hotel opens in early 2012, Dallas will no longer be the only major Texas city without a hotel adjacent to its convention center.
The drama surrounding the 1,000-room hotel, at Lamar and Young streets in downtown Dallas, had some wondering if the project would ever get off the ground. Critics such as Hilton Anatole owner Harlan Crow and Dallas City Councilwoman Angela Hunt opposed public ownership of the hotel, but voters saw it differently. Assistant City Manager A.C. Gonzalez said he remembers discussing the convention center hotel issue in the late 1980s and that the perception then was that it should be a private venture.
But when private financing failed to materialize and Dallas began losing convention business, the city took the next step.
“The deal was not going to happen on its own,” he said. “It really became how to ultimately turn a lemon in to lemonade.”
Gonzalez said the hotel was a hard sell initially, but after the effort gained the support of key leaders on the City Council and in the community, the ball began rolling – only to hit some bumps along the way. Those included a referendum to stop the $514 million project, months of negotiating with Omni and selling the 30-year bonds to investors willing to accept interest rates no higher than 5.5%.
“We were quite fortunate to have so many quality people band together to make it happen,” Gonzalez said.
Lead developer Jack Matthews, president of Dallas-base Matthews Southwest, agreed that teamwork helped propel the project faster than anyone expected.
“We needed to stay true to the development while everything around us was uncertain,” Matthews said. “It’s tricky to keep a whole team together, motivated and working. We were able to do that and we surprised a lot of people when we got out of the ground (so quickly) after the city sold the bonds.”
Dallas may have been late to the table, but it’s making up the lost revenue in contracted bookings that top $13 million at the hotel, with another $50 million in the pipeline, according to an Omni Hotels & Resorts spokeswoman. Based on the Omni’s booking for more than 780,000 total room nights, the anticipated economic impact for the city is $1.1 billion, according to the Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau. Another boost to the local economy is the estimated 3,000 temporary construction jobs created by the development project, as well as 800 permanent hotel positions, Gonzalez said.
The 23-story hotel will be connected to the 2.1 million square-foot Dallas Convention Center via a skybridge. It will feature a Bob’s Steak & Chop House, a sports bar, a farm-to-market concept using Dallas’ own Farmers Market, a Morsel’s café, a Mokara Spa and an urban pool deck. Also included is 80,000 square feet of meeting and event space that is scheduled to open in early 2012.
The site's remaining 2 acres are reserved for dining, retail and other developments designed to create an entertainment district that's appealing to convention goers, leisure travelers and locals. The new development and a burgeoning arts district nearby are expected to bring a new influx of money to Dallas.
"My belief is this (project) is going to change the dynamics of the way Dallas is thought of," Matthews said. "This is a game-changer for downtown."
Key Players
A.C. Gonzalez, David Cook and Karl Zavitkovsky, City of Dallas;
Jack Matthews, Matthews Southwest; 5G studio_collaborative LLC;
BOKA Powell; Vivian-Nichols Associates Inc.; and Balfour/Russell/Pegasus.
January 29, 2010
Project Name: Dallas Convention Center Hotel
Construction Cost (In millions): $327.47
Owner: City of Dallas
Architect: BOKA Powell
Contractor: Balfour Beatty Construction Inc.
Square footage completed/estimated completion date: 1,137,805 SF/September 9, 2011
Ranked by construction cost for projects with permits filed in 2009
January 29, 2010
Project Name: Methodist Hospital for Surgery
Construction Cost (In millions): $34.83
Owner: Medica Development
Architect: BOKA Powell
Contractor: Rogers-O'Brien Construction
Square footage completed/estimated completion date: 110,000 SF/December 2010
Ranked by construction cost for projects with permits filed in 2009
January 29, 2010
Dallas Business Journal
Project Name: Dr Pepper StarCenter in McKinney
Construction Cost (In millions): $11.01
Owner: City of McKinney
Architect: BOKA Powell
Contractor: Balfour Beatty Construction Inc.
Square footage completed/estimated completion date: 84,000 SF/October 31, 2009
Ranked by construction cost for projects with permits filed in 2009
September 19, 2009
After a lengthy negotiation process followed by an unusually swift construction process, the brand new Dr Pepper StarCenter McKinney at Craig Ranch officially opened on Saturday. At the Grand Opening ceremony, McKinney mayor Brian Loughmiller used the over-sized scissors to cut the symbolic ribbon and the beautiful new building was ready for business. With two ice sheets, the 14th and 15th operated by the Dallas Stars in their eighth Dr Pepper StarCenter in the Metroplex, the facility was overflowing with a large crowd of excited hockey players and figure skaters. In addition to the new ice surfaces, the new building’s full-service pro shop, snack bar, and adult bar area (cleverly called The Crossbar) were also open. Officials get ready for the official ribbon-cutting As part of the celebration, residents got to enjoy an hour and a half of free public skating on one rink while a highly-entertaining game of kids under eight from McKinney against the Texas Aces took place on the other. Then the McKinney High School squad, which will call the sparkling new facilities home, took on Frisco High School in a pre-season match-up, while figure skating exhibitions occupied the other rink. Besides all that, there were free Dr Pepper drinks, face-painting and balloon animals for kids, Ice Girls, registration for free skating lessons and to top it all off, complimentary tickets given away for a Stars pre-season game next week at the American Airlines Center. “Every time we open one of these, of course, it’s very exciting and it expands opportunities for more kids to start playing hockey, and hopefully more Stars fans in the long run,” noted Ed Reusch, Dallas Stars Vice President in charge of Dr Pepper StarCenters. “We’re really excited about this one because it’s a little different than our others. It’s a different set-up, it’s going to operate differently. We’re very excited. We think it looks great, we think it feels great, we think it’s going to bring more people into both figure skating and hockey, because it’s really just a fun building to be in.” The new rink, located at 6993 Stars Way near the corner of Alma Road and Collin McKinney Parkway, does have some unique aspects compared to the other Dr Pepper StarCenters. It features a large, wide open lobby area that contains every amenity in a centralized location, instead of having the snack bar or party rooms on a second floor, far removed from the ice surfaces. Here, the party rooms are located in between the two rinks, with doors opening up to either one. “For one thing, it’s only a one-storey building, most of ours are two-storey,” Reusch noted. “So for example, a birthday party has access directly to the ice, so you can go out and come into your party room, have a piece of cake and go back out on the ice. We’ve got a lot more activity out in the lobby - we’ve got the store in the lobby, we’ve got the grill, you’ve got the bar down there, so we’ve got lots of excitement. It’s a better layout and just a more comfortable place to be. Better, newer type of lighting for the rinks, it’s brighter - it’s just a really good set-up.” The impressive new facility is the result of a lot of hard work by a lot of people, with a complex partnership forged between the Stars, the city of McKinney, the McKinney Community Development Corporation (MCDC), the Craig Ranch organized community, Balfour Beatty Construction and the BOKA Powell architect firm, among many others. “There’s a lot of people that have been involved in this,” pointed out Randy Locey, the Stars’ Executive Vice President, Business Operations. “It seems like just yesterday we did the ground-breaking, it was windy and hot out there. And all of a sudden, here we are and we’re open - it’s pretty amazing. It looks great, definitely a little bit different than our other facilities, but we love the end result that we have.” “This project is a perfect example of what we can do when we partner with other people like the Stars, like MCDC, to bring recreational facilities to the community,” said Mayor Loughmiller, already wearing his skates during the opening ceremony. Another key player in seeing the building come to fruition was David Craig, owner and mastermind behind the Craig Ranch community. This is just the latest elite-level athletic facility for Craig Ranch, as it sits in very close proximity to the PGA Tour-caliber TPC Golf Course at Craig Ranch, the Dr. Kenneth Cooper Aerobics Center and the Michael Johnson Performance Training Center. “David Craig, he and I started two years ago putting this together,” noted Pat Magill of Boka Powell. “David has a wonderful vision and I was happy to be a part of that, and bringing the Stars on, he helped to sell that to the city. He’s got a vision and this is part of that vision. Getting the team together and working on this, there were many what people might call compromises, but it’s all getting together and finding a common ground, working together to achieve that end. It’s exciting, I’m honored to be part of it.” “We had a lot of negotiation, a lot of things that went on to get this project off and running,” Locey added. “We were on, we were off for a little while and then we were back on. Then at the last minute, David came to the table, we had some long meetings about how we’d bridge the final gap, that we could make this thing work between us, the city and MCDC. David came to the table with one last little piece that bridged the gap, on top of making a pretty good deal with the city in regards to the dirt here, and now we have this building built, but it wouldn’t have happened without David.” Craig himself was also excited about the new building. “We’re thrilled at Craig Ranch and also for the city of McKinney,” said Craig. “This is a quality of life venue that the residents of Craig Ranch and McKinney and the region will have at their disposal, so this is really special. It has taken our relationship with the Stars to a whole new level. We were partners before and this just solidifies our partnership with such a class act organization as the Dallas Stars.” And as Locey noted, with the ground-breaking back in January, to have this facility already open and functioning so quickly is impressive. He praised Balfour Beatty for their ability to get it completed on time. “Balfour Beatty, we’ve been doing these now for 10 years, they’ve been a huge partner,” Locey said. “If I didn’t have them, could I have said we could do this in an eight-month time span? I don’t know that I could have done that. Along with Boka Powell, we had them come to the table as the architect and everybody’s rolled their sleeves up.” READ THE FULL ARTICLE
Haywood and Blackman both spoke to the children in attendance about the importance of reading and getting an education, listening to their teachers. Reading was especially important in Haywood’s life growing up as his mother was a librarian.
The newly-renovated center received new HP technology resources and other amenities compliments of the Mavs Foundation, a new paint job compliments of AkzoNobel Paints and The Home Depot Foundation, interior design services courtesy of BOKA Powell and new furniture courtesy of BKM Total Office of Texas. Additionally, a team of network professionals from BeautiControl donated their time to set up and install the server, printer and other HP technology.
This year’s project took steps to be “green” by incorporating VOC-free paint from AkzoNobel’s Freshaire Choice line and sustainable, environmentally-friendly furniture, including reupholstered Criterion chairs, from BKM’s “Re-Creations” division. Additionally, the Park South Branch’s obsolete computer equipment will be recycled April 9 through the Dallas Mavericks E-Cycle Drive presented by Samsung and URT (Universal Recycling Technologies).
About the Dallas Mavericks Foundation
The mission of the Dallas Mavericks Foundation is to assist young people through programs stressing education, good health and skills necessary for their future success. Established in October 1996, the Mavs Foundation is dedicated to inspiring and motivating youth to take their education seriously, strive for healthy bodies and minds, become involved in community service activities, set personal goals, visualize their dreams and take responsibility for their own lives and neighborhoods. The Mavs Foundation supports programs and organizations that address the community's most pressing problems involving youth, specifically education, good health and community service activity. Visit www.mavsfoundation.com for a complete listing of previous award recipients and programs.
About AkzoNobel Paints
AkzoNobel is one of the world’s leading industrial companies serving as the largest global coatings manufacturer, a major worldwide supplier of specialty chemicals and number one in decorative paints and performance coatings. Committed to developing innovative products and cutting edge sustainable technologies, AkzoNobel endeavors to deliver whatever customers require, wherever and whenever they need it. Based in the Netherlands, AkzoNobel employs approximately 68,000 people in more than 80 countries, is a Fortune Global 500 company and is listed on the Euronext Amsterdam stock exchange. Additionally, the company is the Chemicals Industry leader on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes and is included on the FTSE4Good Index. Headquartered near Cleveland, Ohio, AkzoNobel’s United States Decorative Paints operations produce decorative coatings brands such as Glidden, Dulux, Ralph Lauren, Devoe, Sikkens, Flood, Fuller-O’Brien and Liquid Nails caulks and adhesives. Products are sold through AkzoNobel company stores, national/retail outlets and independent dealers in the United States and Puerto Rico and are exported internationally. AkzoNobel is an official corporate partner of Major League Soccer and the Glidden brand is the official paint of Major League Soccer. Visit www.akzonobel.com and www.glidden.com for more information.
About BOKA Powell
BOKA Powell provides architectural design, interior design and master planning for clients across the United States and Mexico. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, with offices in Austin and Fort Worth, BOKA Powell is on the leading edge of creating vibrant, economically feasible projects using fully-integrated design services. Recent projects include Methodist Hospital for Surgery in Addison, Dallas Convention Center Hotel, Saint Ann Court in Dallas and a portfolio that includes corporate headquarters, commercial office, higher education, healthcare, mixed-use, hospitality, multi-family residential and masterplanning. Visit www.bokapowell.com for more information.
About BKM Total Office of Texas
BKM Total Office of Texas serves corporate, healthcare, education and hospitality organizations by furnishing the right workspace every day. A Certified Woman-Owned Enterprise with more than $40 million in annual revenue and 80 employees, BKM is Steelcase’s leading provider in this market. As part of the sustainable effort for this project, BKM’s “Re-Creations” division donated chair reupholstery and refurbished activity tables. Visit www.bkmtexas.com for more information.
About The Home Depot Foundation
Created in 2002, The Home Depot Foundation supports non-profit organizations dedicated to creating and preserving healthy, affordable homes as the cornerstone of sustainable communities. The Foundation’s goal is for all families to have the opportunity to live in healthy, efficient homes they can afford over the long-term; to have access to safe, vibrant parks and greenspaces; and to receive the economic, social and environmental benefits of living in a sustainable community. Since its formation, The Home Depot Foundation has granted $190 million to non-profit organizations and supported the development of more than 95,000 homes, planted more than 1.2 million trees and built or refurbished more than 1875 playgrounds, parks and greenspaces. Visit www.homedepotfoundation.org for more information and follow The Home Depot Foundation on Twitter @homedepotfdn.
About BeautiControl and The WHO Foundation
BeautiControl is an international direct-sales company with an independent sales force offering high quality skin care and spa treatment products. BeautiControl is committed to giving back to local communities across the United States and Puerto Rico through its charity of choice, The WHO (Women Helping Others®) Foundation. The Foundation supports community-focused charities serving the overlooked needs of women, children and families. BeautiControl is a subsidiary of Tupperware® Brands Corporation. For more information, visit www.beauticontrol.com or www.whofoundation.org or call 1.800.BEAUTI.1.
Project Name: Dallas Convention Center Hotel
Construction Cost (In millions): $327.47
Owner: City of Dallas
Architect: BOKA Powell
Contractor: Balfour Beatty Construction Inc.
Square footage completed/estimated completion date: 1,137,805 SF/September 9, 2011
Ranked by construction cost for projects with permits filed in 2009
Project Name: Methodist Hospital for Surgery
Construction Cost (In millions): $34.83
Owner: Medica Development
Architect: BOKA Powell
Contractor: Rogers-O'Brien Construction
Square footage completed/estimated completion date: 110,000 SF/December 2010
Ranked by construction cost for projects with permits filed in 2009
Project Name: Dr Pepper StarCenter in McKinney
Construction Cost (In millions): $11.01
Owner: City of McKinney
Architect: BOKA Powell
Contractor: Balfour Beatty Construction Inc.
Square footage completed/estimated completion date: 84,000 SF/October 31, 2009
Ranked by construction cost for projects with permits filed in 2009
After a lengthy negotiation process followed by an unusually swift construction process, the brand new Dr Pepper StarCenter McKinney at Craig Ranch officially opened on Saturday. At the Grand Opening ceremony, McKinney mayor Brian Loughmiller used the over-sized scissors to cut the symbolic ribbon and the beautiful new building was ready for business. With two ice sheets, the 14th and 15th operated by the Dallas Stars in their eighth Dr Pepper StarCenter in the Metroplex, the facility was overflowing with a large crowd of excited hockey players and figure skaters. In addition to the new ice surfaces, the new building’s full-service pro shop, snack bar, and adult bar area (cleverly called The Crossbar) were also open. Officials get ready for the official ribbon-cutting As part of the celebration, residents got to enjoy an hour and a half of free public skating on one rink while a highly-entertaining game of kids under eight from McKinney against the Texas Aces took place on the other. Then the McKinney High School squad, which will call the sparkling new facilities home, took on Frisco High School in a pre-season match-up, while figure skating exhibitions occupied the other rink. Besides all that, there were free Dr Pepper drinks, face-painting and balloon animals for kids, Ice Girls, registration for free skating lessons and to top it all off, complimentary tickets given away for a Stars pre-season game next week at the American Airlines Center. “Every time we open one of these, of course, it’s very exciting and it expands opportunities for more kids to start playing hockey, and hopefully more Stars fans in the long run,” noted Ed Reusch, Dallas Stars Vice President in charge of Dr Pepper StarCenters. “We’re really excited about this one because it’s a little different than our others. It’s a different set-up, it’s going to operate differently. We’re very excited. We think it looks great, we think it feels great, we think it’s going to bring more people into both figure skating and hockey, because it’s really just a fun building to be in.” The new rink, located at 6993 Stars Way near the corner of Alma Road and Collin McKinney Parkway, does have some unique aspects compared to the other Dr Pepper StarCenters. It features a large, wide open lobby area that contains every amenity in a centralized location, instead of having the snack bar or party rooms on a second floor, far removed from the ice surfaces. Here, the party rooms are located in between the two rinks, with doors opening up to either one. “For one thing, it’s only a one-storey building, most of ours are two-storey,” Reusch noted. “So for example, a birthday party has access directly to the ice, so you can go out and come into your party room, have a piece of cake and go back out on the ice. We’ve got a lot more activity out in the lobby - we’ve got the store in the lobby, we’ve got the grill, you’ve got the bar down there, so we’ve got lots of excitement. It’s a better layout and just a more comfortable place to be. Better, newer type of lighting for the rinks, it’s brighter - it’s just a really good set-up.” The impressive new facility is the result of a lot of hard work by a lot of people, with a complex partnership forged between the Stars, the city of McKinney, the McKinney Community Development Corporation (MCDC), the Craig Ranch organized community, Balfour Beatty Construction and the Boka Powell architect firm, among many others. “There’s a lot of people that have been involved in this,” pointed out Randy Locey, the Stars’ Executive Vice President, Business Operations. “It seems like just yesterday we did the ground-breaking, it was windy and hot out there. And all of a sudden, here we are and we’re open - it’s pretty amazing. It looks great, definitely a little bit different than our other facilities, but we love the end result that we have.” “This project is a perfect example of what we can do when we partner with other people like the Stars, like MCDC, to bring recreational facilities to the community,” said Mayor Loughmiller, already wearing his skates during the opening ceremony. Another key player in seeing the building come to fruition was David Craig, owner and mastermind behind the Craig Ranch community. This is just the latest elite-level athletic facility for Craig Ranch, as it sits in very close proximity to the PGA Tour-caliber TPC Golf Course at Craig Ranch, the Dr. Kenneth Cooper Aerobics Center and the Michael Johnson Performance Training Center. “David Craig, he and I started two years ago putting this together,” noted Pat Magill of Boka Powell. “David has a wonderful vision and I was happy to be a part of that, and bringing the Stars on, he helped to sell that to the city. He’s got a vision and this is part of that vision. Getting the team together and working on this, there were many what people might call compromises, but it’s all getting together and finding a common ground, working together to achieve that end. It’s exciting, I’m honored to be part of it.” “We had a lot of negotiation, a lot of things that went on to get this project off and running,” Locey added. “We were on, we were off for a little while and then we were back on. Then at the last minute, David came to the table, we had some long meetings about how we’d bridge the final gap, that we could make this thing work between us, the city and MCDC. David came to the table with one last little piece that bridged the gap, on top of making a pretty good deal with the city in regards to the dirt here, and now we have this building built, but it wouldn’t have happened without David.” Craig himself was also excited about the new building. “We’re thrilled at Craig Ranch and also for the city of McKinney,” said Craig. “This is a quality of life venue that the residents of Craig Ranch and McKinney and the region will have at their disposal, so this is really special. It has taken our relationship with the Stars to a whole new level. We were partners before and this just solidifies our partnership with such a class act organization as the Dallas Stars.” And as Locey noted, with the ground-breaking back in January, to have this facility already open and functioning so quickly is impressive. He praised Balfour Beatty for their ability to get it completed on time. “Balfour Beatty, we’ve been doing these now for 10 years, they’ve been a huge partner,” Locey said. “If I didn’t have them, could I have said we could do this in an eight-month time span? I don’t know that I could have done that. Along with Boka Powell, we had them come to the table as the architect and everybody’s rolled their sleeves up.” READ THE FULL ARTICLE
The 23-story Omni Dallas Convention Center Hotel has broken ground. In May, Dallas residents voted for the hotel, a steel and glass boomerang-shaped tower that will feature 1,000 rooms and skybridge access to the Dallas Convention Center. Design plans call for a signature restaurant, lounges, retail, a high-end Mokara Spa, and pool deck. In addition, the Omni Dallas will offer a minimum of 80,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, with a 33,500 square-foot Senior Ballroom, a 16,500 square-foot Junior Ballroom, and 10,000 square feet of usable outdoor area. The hotel is slated to open in 2012. BOKA Powell is the project's architect of record. 5Gstudio_collaborative is serving as the design architect and offering interior design services. Vivian-Nichols Associates will also work on the hotel's interiors. Matthews Southwest is the project's developer.
Transparency and technology: The Modernist obsession with glass put pressure on industry to improve the material’s performance. One of the first responses was the bronze, titanium, and gold mirror glasses developed in the 1960s and ’70s. Mirror glass is great in terms of reducing solar loads, with an SHGC in the 0.20 to 0.30 range or lower, but awful for daylighting, with a VLT often less than 10 percent. In the 1980s, low-E coatings were introduced to reduce reflectivity and improve VLT while still controlling the SHGC. These coatings have evolved to the point where, as with the Cleveland Clinic, an architect can specify glass with a VLT in the 40 to 50 percent range without significantly increasing solar heat gain. Only a short time ago, glass with a VLT greater than 40 percent had a minimum SHGC of 0.40. But over the past decade, manufacturers have been able to reduce the SHGC first to 0.35, and then down to 0.30. These numbers correspond to glasses that appear clear, as opposed to green, gray, or blue/green. Low-iron glass typically has less of a greenish tint than float glass. Many manufacturers also produce fritted glazing. This type of glass includes a silk-screened ceramic pattern that helps reduce glare and the SHGC, even if only by a small amount. Although frit is not new, architects are finding new ways to use it, such as in Gehry Partners’ frosted white InterActiveCorp building, not far from the Chelsea Modern, on New York City’s west side [Architectural Record, October 2007, page 114]. The cladding strategy for Block 21, a hotel and condominium project under construction in Austin, Texas, includes a glass and aluminum curtain wall with large spandrel panels for the building’s lower floors. The tower’s upper levels have larger expanses of clear glass balanced with areas of higher reflectivity glass. Another option is electrochromic glazing, otherwise known as switchable glass. Dane Sanders, an engineer with Boulder, Colorado–based daylighting consultant Clanton and Associates, originally proposed electrochromic glazing for Block 21, a 35-story hotel and condominium project under construction in Austin, Texas. The glass appears clear, but becomes darker when exposed to sun, reducing VLT but improving thermal performance by as much as 80 percent. But “it’s expensive, and it’s another thing you have to supply with electricity,” says Sanders, which perhaps explains why it is not part of the building’s final design. Instead, the Block 21 project team, which includes Andersson Wise Architects and BOKA Powell as architect of record, focused on reducing east and west exposures, introducing a more conventional glass-and-aluminum curtain wall with large spandrels for the hotel. Then, for the condominium portion at the top of the tower, the designers chose larger expanses of recessed, clearer glass balanced with areas of higher reflectivity glass. The overall effect is glassy, but the variety of constructions should ensure a high enough level of performance to help the project achieve its LEED Platinum goal. READ THE FULL ARTICLE
The Carnegie Building receives first place from the United Masonry Contractors Association in the Industrial/Commercial category.
Mason Contractor: Lucia, LLC
Architectural Firm: BOKA Powell
Design Architect: David Schwarz
Owner: Sundance Square Management
Suppliers: Hohmann & Barnard, Inc., TXI/Spec Mix, Featherlite, Dallas Cast Stone Company, Inc., Advanced Cast Stone
Methodist Health System will announce today that it is building a $60 million, 32-bed orthopedic hospital in Addison and will start construction Wednesday. The Dallas-based hospital system, known mostly for its southern Dallas presence, is undergoing its most aggressive expansion and construction schedule in its 82-year history. A $38 million, 60,000 square-foot hospital under construction in McKinney is scheduled to open in February. The second phase of the new $37 million Mansfield hospital will be complete in the fall. And today Methodist also is announcing a 20-year operating lease of the Richardson Regional Medical Center, a 205 bed acute care facility. They’re growing to survive, said Steve Mansfield, CEO of Methodist. Charity care’s growth has been steeper than growth in operation revenue. “That’s typically a precursor to hospital death,” Mansfield said. “It was overwhelming the organization.” During Mansfield’s interviews to the hob in the first half of 2006, board members made it clear they wanted to take the company in a new direction, north of the Trinity River. His three-step marching orders: Improve quality and service to patients and physicians, expand within southern Dallas and grow strategically into new markets. Methodist had operational revenues of $465 million when Mansfield accepted the job in 2006. They set a goal for $1 billion in revenue in 2012. “People thought we were loco,” Mansfield said. “We kumbaya-ed around that and started the journey in earnest around 2007.” For help, Mansfield hired Michael Arvin, a Tenet Healthcare Corp. executive for eight years with many more years before that at Hospital Corporation of America, the nation’s largest publicly traded hospital system. Arvin was named chief development officer, the company’s first. Until now, Methodist never needed one. Arvin said he pays attention to the rise and fall of land values and knows how to negotiate with banks. “We’re positioned now to be able to react to the market,” Arvin said. “Everything has softened dramatically. Construction costs have come down. It allows us to take advantage and gives us the ability to negotiate with vendors.” Their latest venture in Addison, the Methodist Hospital for Special Surgery, will be the first orthopedic hospital in the Dallas area, which until now has been one of few major cities without one. Houston, New York, Chicago and Las Angeles all have at least one orthopedic hospital. It will open with seven fully equipped operating rooms, 32 private patient rooms, 10 out-patient treatment rooms, a diagnostic imaging suite and areas for physical therapy and rehabilitation. The hospital will focus on treating patients in need of highly specialized spine and joint surgery. It will be located north of Sojourn Drive between Dallas Parkway and Addison Road.
The builders of luxury office building Saint Ann Court are staging a topping out ceremony Friday. A topping out ceremony is an event that allows a building's developer to celebrate the fact that the last beam has been placed at the top of the building. Developer Harwood International is behind the Class AA luxury office building. The completed building will have more than 320,000 square feet of office space to lease out to tenants and 26 distinctive floors. The building was designed by Perkins + Will, Shimoda Design Group and BOKA Powell. READ THE DALLAS BUSINESS JOURNAL ARTICLE
DALLAS – Dallas Mavericks players Jerry Stackhouse and Brandon Bass will help dedicate a new Reading & Learning Center at Dallas Community Lighthouse’s Eban Village Kids Campus on Tuesday, April 7th at 4:00 p.m. Stackhouse and Bass will be joined by representatives from HP, AkzoNobel Paints LLC, BOKA Powell, Concept Surfaces LLC, Carpet Services Inc., BeautiControl, the Dallas Mavericks and the Dallas Mavericks Foundation. Following the dedication ceremony, Stackhouse and Bass will commemorate the space by placing their handprints and autographs on the walls of the new reading room. The newly-renovated facility at Eban Village received new computer technology compliments of HP, a new paint job compliments of AkzoNobel, new flooring and baseboards compliments of BOKA Powell, Concept Surfaces LLC/Knight Quartz Flooring, Carpet Services Inc. and Texas Carpet Recycling, and new furniture and other amenities courtesy of the Dallas Mavericks Foundation. Additionally, a team of network professionals from BeautiControl/the WHO Foundation donated their time to set up and install the server, printer and other computer technology from HP. “The generosity and support of the Dallas Mavericks Foundation and HP has provided the Eban Village Kids Campus with a much needed facelift,” said Diana Baker, Executive Director of Dallas Community Lighthouse. “The support of the Mavs Foundation, HP and the rest of our great partners has enabled Dallas Community Lighthouse to expand the area of impact our programs provide to the at-risk students and residents of Eban Village.” This is the eighth Dallas Mavericks Reading & Learning Center. This year’s project took steps to be “green” by incorporating VOC-free paint, recycled tile flooring and environmentally friendly furniture. Last season, a Reading & Learning Center was put in at the Jeffries Street Learning Center, and previous year’s centers were put in at the Southeast Branch of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Arlington, Buckner/Vickery Wellness Center, Interfaith Housing Coalition, the West Dallas Boys & Girls Club, the Mesquite Boys & Girls Club and Bryan’s House. About the Dallas Mavericks Foundation: The mission of the Dallas Mavericks Foundation is to assist young people through programs stressing education, good health and skills necessary for their future success. Established in October of 1996, the Mavs Foundation is dedicated to inspiring and motivating youth to take their education seriously, strive for healthy bodies and minds, become involved in community service activities, set personal goals, visualize their dreams and take responsibility for their own lives and neighborhoods. The Mavs Foundation supports programs and organizations that address the community's most pressing problems involving youth, specifically education, good health and community service activity. Visit www.mavsfoundation.com for a complete listing of previous award recipients and programs. About Dallas Community Lighthouse: Dallas Community Lighthouse was founded in November of 2002 in an effort to combat one of the most profound problems in Dallas: children not completing their education. The mission of Dallas Community Lighthouse is to assist at-risk youth in discovering pathways to success by concentrating on their social, educational, personal and environmental issues. Dallas Community Lighthouse is about giving the at-risk child the tools, knowledge and self-confidence they need to succeed in today's world to become future productive and contributing citizens. Project "Kids Campus" is an on-site after school tutoring program located in low income or tax-credit apartment communities in both North and South Dallas. Kids Campus offers tutoring in math, language arts and reading, as well as an 8-week summer camp. The Kids Campus programs are tailored to the individual communities and provide educational services to both children and adults. READ THE FULL ARTICLE
Several McKinney city officials along with City Manager Frank Ragan, Craig Ranch owner David Craig and Dallas Stars Executive Vice President Randy Locey picked up shovels shaped like hockey sticks and tossed dirt into the air Friday afternoon at the Dr Pepper StarCenter groundbreaking ceremony. The ceremony was well attended at the construction site on the southeast corner of Alma and Collin McKinney Pkwy on March 20. Sunny skies provided the perfect backdrop to the start of a project that will literally bring the city of McKinney to a new level of coolness. "Work has begun on the new star center here in McKinney, but I'll tell you it would not be possible without our new, or not so new now, city manager Frank Ragan and the efforts of Randy Locey with the Dallas Stars," Craig said. "We're thrilled for the Starcenter to be a part of our community." Young hockey players Drew Pitts, Brandon Sizemore and Zack Hefley attended the ceremony and said they play for McKinney Ice Hockey and are excited about the new facility. They said it will be nice to have a place to practice and play games that is close to home and they said they'll enjoy having their own rink. Speakers thanked MCDC, city staff, MEDC, Balfour Beatty Construction, Boka Powell Architects, the Dallas Stars organization and Craig Ranch for working together to make the project possible. "You don't see that kind of real partnership happen very often," Ragan said. At one point the project was looking to be close to 1.8 million dollars over budget, Ragan said, but after teaming with Craig and Locey the cost of the project was eventually brought in at it's original budget in terms of the city's contribution. Locey said they're comfortable the new facility will open by the end of September. It will have two sheets of ice, a full-service StarStuff pro shop, a snack bar, and four party/meeting rooms. McKinney Ice Hockey Club and the AT&T High School Hockey League will be home teams at the StarCenter home as well as other leagues and the Texas Aces which fields travel teams of all ages in the North Texas Hockey League. The StarCenter will also feature beginner leagues for youth and adult hockey players run by the Dallas Stars, advanced adult hockey leagues, a Learn-to-Skate program, figure skating, birthday parties, public skating, corporate team building events, private ice rentals, camps, clinics, tournaments, and skating competitions. By Katie Knickerbocker, McKinney Courier-Gazette READ THE FULL ARTICLE
Frisco is carving out quite a niche in the world of professional sports with facilities such as Dr. Pepper Ballpark, Pizza Hut Park and The Stars Center sports complex. Now a new facility devoted to amateur athletics promises to bring the same notoriety. is carving out quite a niche in the world of professional sports with facilities such as Dr. Pepper Ballpark, Pizza Hut Park and The Stars Center sports complex. Now a new facility devoted to amateur athletics promises to bring the same notoriety. "We wanted to be a part of and help Frisco become a sports mecca," said Gary Oliver, director of operations for Fieldhouse USA. Fieldhouse USA is 145,000-square-foot state of the art center. "Our goal is for kids who come into this facility to have the greatest experience they've ever had," said Oliver. The facility boasts the nations largest indoor hardcourt. Twelve full basketball courts, all state of the art, that with the push of a button can transition to volleyball courts in just 90 seconds. The second part of the facility is an indoor turfed field that will support soccer, lacrosse, flag and arena football. It doesn't end there. The facility also has three full tennis courts and will still have 10,000-square-feet left over for an athletic training facility. Nicki Rodgers has been active in the high school volleyball community of Frisco for years. "I think it will really increase the competitiveness with the frisco based schools," said Rodgers. Frisco ISD is poised for tremendous growth. There are more children in pre-k day care in the city than there are students in Frisco ISD. Competitive rules mean that in some sports kids with talent may not make their school team, that's where Fieldhouse USA comes in with alternatives for youth sports and programs to tackle bigger problems like childhood obesity. "It's getting kids moving," said Rodgers, "That's especially important to our family." The facility will have a complete food court, wi-fi and it's scoreboards are accessible online so even if you're not at the game you can track what's going on from anywhere. READ THE FULL ARTICLE
ON THE STIMULUS HUNT: Kevin Bailey, with HKS Inc., carries a copy of the federal stimulus package as he tours the Dallas County Southwestern Institute of Forensic Science under construction at 2355 Stemmons Fwy. HKS, the project architect, plans to target more government-related design projects.
Metroplex architects and construction contractors are poring over the $787 billion federal stimulus package, looking for ways to capitalize on the massive effort to jump-start the economy.
Dallas-based HKS Inc. has identified about $12 billion worth of work the company could target nationwide under the stimulus bill signed by President Barack Obama on Feb. 17, said Kevin Bailey, director of government project development for the architectural firm.
The number of projects is “too many to count,” he said. Most of the work is outside Texas, but not all.
One North Texas project would be the expansion of the Federal Aviation Administration headquarters in Fort Worth, Bailey said. HKS designed the FAA’s existing 300,000-square-foot facility, and the agency’s plans call for it to move into about 530,000 square feet. The FAA has not put a price tag on the project or specified whether the facility will be an expansion of the existing building or construction at a new location, said Shala Geer-Smith of the General Services Administration, the government agency that teams with other agencies to meet their real estate needs.
Other Texas projects HKS is eyeing include a Federal Bureau of Investigation office building in Dallas, a federal courthouse in San Antonio and border stations and ports of entry along the U.S.-Mexico border and the U.S.-Canada border, Bailey said.
The GSA is reviewing new construction projects, renovations and a backlog of $7 billion in maintenance and repairs for possible funding under the stimulus bill.
Bailey thinks the stimulus package will be effective in getting projects moving.
“This money is in the pipeline,” Bailey said. “It’s there and it’s real. It’s not contingent on somebody’s ability to get a loan. I think that’s a confidence builder.”
Dallas-based BOKA Powell LLC architectural firm also is looking for opportunities from the stimulus plan, Principal Donald Powell said. Powell sees the greatest opportunities in the areas of health care and transit-oriented development.
The Associated General Contractors of America estimates the more than $135 billion in construction and infrastructure investment in the stimulus package will create or save nearly 2 million jobs nationwide over the next two years, increase personal earnings by $75 billion and add $230 billion to the gross national product.
But the impact will be minimal for the North Texas construction industry, other than those involved in transportation projects, said Raleigh Roussell, president and CEO of TEXO Inc., the name for the local chapter of the AGC.
“There probably is not a lot of work in there for our members, which are primarily commercial building contractors,” Roussell said. “Dallas-Fort Worth is not a big federal construction market.”
READ THE DALLAS BUSINESS JOURNAL ARTICLE
By Bill Hethcock Staff Writer
Dust kicks up along Bernard Street from time to time as the sound of construction drones on. At times, the foundation of the Kappa Kappa Gamma house shakes.
The Delta Gamma and Kappa Delta houses, a $2.9 million construction project on Sorority Row, will join the five existing houses on Bernard and West Prairie streets.
"We are striving for this project to be substantially completed before Fall Rush of 2009, and we are working with the contractor daily to help ensure that this occurs," Meredith Butler, senior facilities planner said.
Ceremonial groundbreaking for the buildings took place during Homecoming Week in 2008, and dirt finally began to move, although a little late, in the last couple of weeks, said Amy Ayres, assistant dean of students.
Construction hasn't been without a few inconveniences to students, though.
Some parking spaces from Lot 39, located near Sorority Row at the corner of West Prairie and Bernard Streets, have disappeared completely and others are being used for the construction site. However, Butler said the impact is minimal.
"Most of the spaces that were permanently taken out were faculty and staff parking and services spaces," she said.
Construction hugs the south side of the Kappa Kappa Gamma house, which is a constant source of noise for the women living there.
Jessica Johnson, an education junior who lives in the house, said she's heard the construction as early as 6:30 a.m. While inconvenient, Butler said this early activity at the construction site is typical.
Despite the growing pains, the women said they're excited about the new neighbors and that the construction is expanding Greek life because it's "for everyone."
The two houses are scheduled to open in August. NT contracted BOKA Powell, LLC, designer of the original five sorority row houses, to design the new houses in the hopes that reusing the existing plans for the other five sorority houses would "accelerate the design process" according to a board briefing memo from January 2008.
Construction for the houses is paid for by NT through revenue bonds, and repaid through a contract with the sororities. The cost of the interior construction, design and furnishing belongs solely to the sororities.
Betty Mulkey, the national vice president of membership for Kappa Delta, said the new house is significant for the "recolonized" Gamma Beta chapter.
"We had a chapter at UNT many, many years ago, so we are reinstating the … chapter," said Mulkey. "We are thrilled that we can live on the row with other chapters. "
The construction of NT's Sorority Row follows the national trend of providing concentrated Greek villages.
"The women seem to enjoy having that community," Ayres said. "It's great to provide that atmosphere for them."
READ THE ARTICLE AT PEGASUS NEWS
By Kerry Sloan of North Texas Daily
Landowners asking for a zoning change on a prime Uptown tract are showing details of what they plan to build on the Katy Trail site.
Foch Investments/Development The planned St. Regis hotel and condo tower would be 103 feel taller than current zoning allows.
Los Angeles-based Foch Investments/Development is seeking city approval to construct a hotel and condo tower at Cedar Springs Road and Carlisle Street that would be 103 feet taller than current zoning will allow.
In return for the taller building, the landowner says it will move the building farther away from the Katy Trail with a landscaped buffer.
The hotel would be operated by St. Regis Hotels.
Foch Investments' zoning request has drawn opposition from critics who want the real estate firm to be held to current zoning requirements.
The City Plan Commission turned down the height increase.
The Dallas City Council will consider the request next week.
The property owner has responded that lowering the height of the building to current standards will require that it take up more of the site and sit much closer to the Katy Trail.
The taller, 24-story building – designed by architects BOKA Powell LLC – would cost about $200 million and contain 150 hotel rooms plus 70 to 80 condos.
Foch Investments says it has operating agreements and financing in place for the project, which would open in late 2010 or early 2011.
"We will break ground at the end of the year or no later than first quarter of next year," Foch principal David Thurman said.
"Our deal is signed and confirmed with St. Regis with our existing zoning."
READ THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS ARTICLE
By Steve Brown
DALLAS — Motel 6 held groundbreaking ceremonies on Monday in Northlake, Texas, for the first corporately-built and owned property to feature the newly-redesigned Motel 6 building and room design. The property, located between Dallas and Fort Worth, will showcase the “Phoenix” prototype, named after the mythical birth of rebirth and renewal. The new design features rooms with a modern, Euro-chic design.
“With all the environmentally aware features and the sleek new design, this is truly our greenest motel ever,” said Olivier Poirot, CEO for Accor North America, Motel 6 and Studio 6. “This is the first look at how Motel 6 is growing and how it is taking the industry lead in being a good steward of the environment while still offering travelers a great room at the best price of any national chain.”
In addition to its modern styling, the design incorporates a number of green and environmentally friendly features, such as wood-effect laminate flooring made of 80 percent pre-consumer recycled material, and the building is designed to house a system of thermal solar panels for water heating purposes. The property will also adhere to the company’s ongoing eco-friendly initiatives like the fluorescent light bulb and battery recycling program, the use of technologically advanced heating and cooling systems, the Honeywell Cool Control Plus program, and water conservation measures.
The “Phoenix” prototype was first unveiled by Motel 6 in March of 2008. Major features include a new building exterior designed by BOKA Powell, a spacious lobby with a new 24-hour food and beverage vending market place, and a modern guestroom design that features bright accent colors. In addition to the wood-effect laminate flooring, the room also includes a 32-inch flat-screen TV, ambient lighting, a multi-media panel for mp3 players, CD players and laptop computers, Wi-Fi internet access, and a settee/banquette seating area.
The Northlake property is scheduled to open during the second half of 2009. In addition, Motel 6 has already begun renovating corporate properties in Texas with the new room design and at select properties across the country. For more information on Motel 6, visit www.motel6.com.
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DALLAS, Texas | Motel 6 held groundbreaking ceremonies Monday in Northlake, Texas, for the first corporately-built and owned property to feature the newly-redesigned Motel 6 building and room design. The property, located between Dallas and Fort Worth, will showcase the “Phoenix” prototype, named after the mythical birth of rebirth and renewal. The new design is a revolution in the economy lodging experience, featuring rooms with a modern, Euro-chic design.
“With all the environmentally aware features and the sleek new design, this is truly our greenest motel ever,” said Olivier Poirot, CEO for Accor North America, Motel 6 and Studio 6. “This is the first look at how Motel 6 is growing and will take the industry lead in being a good steward of the environment while still offering travelers a great room at the best price of any national chain.”
In addition to its modern styling, the design incorporates a number of green and environmentally friendly features, such as wood-effect laminate flooring made of 80% pre-consumer recycled material, and the building is designed to house a system of thermal solar panels for water heating purposes. The property will also adhere to the company’s ongoing earth-friendly initiatives like the fluorescent light bulb and battery recycling program, the use of technologically advanced heating and cooling systems, the Honeywell Cool Control Plus program, and water conservation measures.
The efficient, no-frills and modern design of the new Motel 6 look will set a new standard in both appearance and environmentally-conscious practices. It will change the way travelers look at economy lodging – offering guests both style and the low price they come to expect of Motel 6.
The “Phoenix” prototype was first unveiled by Motel 6 in March of 2008. Major features include a new building exterior designed by BOKA Powell, a spacious lobby with a new 24-hour food and beverage vending market place, and a modern guestroom design that features bright accent colors. In addition to the wood-effect laminate flooring, the room also includes a 32-inch flat-screen TV, ambient lighting, a multi-media panel for mp3 players, CD players and laptop computers, Wi-Fi internet access, and a settee/banquette seating area.
The Northlake property is scheduled to open during the second half of 2009. In addition, Motel 6 has already begun renovating corporate properties in Texas with the new room design and at select properties across the country. For more information on Motel 6, please visit motel6.com.
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Construction started in late fall on the $260-million mixed-use Block 21 in the core of downtown Austin. Bounded by 2nd Street, 3rd Street, Guadalupe and Lavaca, the project is just one block north of Town Lake.
Austin-based Stratus Properties and the Los Angeles-based Canyon-Johnson Urban Fund are leading the project, which includes the W Austin Hotel & Residences, a key component of the 35-story development. Occupying a former vacant lot, the project is striving for Platinum LEED Certification.
The project was announced in May and is targeted for a 2010 completion. Dallas-based Austin Commercial was chosen to be the general contractor on the project, which will incorporate 196 luxury condominium residences, 250 hotel guestrooms, spa, signature restaurant, approximately 47,000 sq ft of ground- and second-floor retail as well as public spaces. A 2,200-seat theater and music venue will also serve as the new home of public television KLRU-TV’s Austin City Limits, the Austin-based televised concert series.
Team members include design architects Andersson-Wise Architects of Austin; interiors consultant Holden & Dupuy of New Orleans; Seattle’s Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen for public space and interior design; venue designers Rios Clementi Hale Studios of Los Angeles; Dallas-based BOKA Powell for project coordination and plan production; and Austin-based Gardens for landscape architecture.
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Balfour Beatty Construction was selected by the City of McKinney to build a new Dr Pepper StarCenter for the Dallas Stars. Congratulations to everyone who worked hard to win this project! This will be our sixth project with Dallas Stars. We built four StarCenters in the DFW area and are currently working to expand the Frisco facility. Special thanks to all who worked on these projects and cultivated our long term relationship with this client. Project Description Balfour Beatty Construction and BOKA Powell will provide design-build services for the $11.5 million Dr Pepper StarCenter. The facility will consist of a new one-story 84,000 square foot building with two National Hockey League sized ice rinks, pro shop with skate rental facilities, administrative offices and meeting rooms, retail store, locker rooms, and concession area.
DALLAS - The Gaedeke Group is planning a major overhaul of the 256,543-sf One McKinney Plaza, where four new deals have taken all but 965 sf of the class A's remaining space. The estimated $6-million to $7-million retooling, which is still awaiting the owner's final nod, is slated to start in February.
BOKA Powell LLC in Dallas will be presenting its latest set of plans to the owner in two weeks, according to Belinda Dabliz, vice president of leasing for locally based Gaedeke Group. Built in the mid-1980s at 3232 McKinney Ave., the 15-story building is a marquee footprint in Uptown at the southeast corner of the tony avenue's intersection with Hall Street. And for the first time in its history, Dabliz says there will be retail space on the first floor with windows on McKinney Avenue. Although the size of the retail space has yet to be determined, the Weitzman Group in Dallas is on the prowl for restaurants and other complementary shops for the asset.
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Austin, Texas is a city blessed with both sense and sensibility. Its commitment to environmentally sustainable practices, codes and incentives makes the capital a role model for the state, as well as the country. The city also has vibrant cultural sensibility, grounded in its vibrant music and arts scenes and self-proclaimed cool vibe. Both identities will be melded in the burgeoning Second Street District downtown, a pedestrian friendly, mixed-use area planned as a model for sustainable development. Block 21, the last piece of the Second Street District puzzle, is being developed by Austin based Stratus Properties, with local architecture firm Andersson-Wise leading the design team.
The $265 million, 780,000 square-foot project will include a 35 story tower with 200 luxury condominiums atop a 20 room W Hotel, shops, restaurants and the centerpiece of the project, a 2,000 seat theater where the PBS live music show Austin City Limits will be recorded. The project will have a podium rising 60 feet above street level that will contain the hotel lobby, a restaurant, retail space and the music venue. Atop the podium will be a green roof, as well as pools for the hotel and the condominium tower.
“It’s thrilling to build a project around Austin’s historic music scene, and a great deal of credit goes to the tireless support of the mayor and city council,” says Beau Armstrong, chief executive of Stratus. Driving the design of the venue is Austin’s out-of-doors lifestyle, made possible by the area’s temperate climate and mild winters. “By creating two outdoor public spaces adjacent to the [Austin City Limits] studio, we will take the music out into the streets,” says Arthur Andersson, Principal of Andersson-Wise. The PBS show, which has 30 tapings per year, will share the space with Live Nation, which will operate the venue and produce its own live shows. The venue has a balcony level, which will be closed off with curtains during the more intimate, 740 seat Austin City Limits events. Live Nation will open the balcony for its bigger shows.
Indoor/outdoor mobility and open public spaces are also part of the developer’s commitment to ecological stewardship, as are social and artistic sustainability. Stratus and the design team are collaborating with Austin’s Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems (CMPBS) on this application of appropriate technologies and sustainable design practices for the development.
“First of all, multiuse development gives neighborhood vitality by offering its residents many choices within the district, thus reducing the need to travel by car to other parts of the city for services or entertainment,” says CMPBS co-director Gail Vittori. “Secondly, environmental strategies will be evident in every part of the development, from providing bicycles for hotel guests to implementing a comprehensive storm-water management system.”
The goal of those involved in the project is to make Block 21 the first mixed-use development in downtown Austin to be rated under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green building rating system.
In addition to open spaces and a landscaped public plaza on the street level, the green roofs will help minimize the heat-island effect generated by the dense development. The green roofs will also work together with a rooftop cistern system to cleanse and slow storm-water runoff from the site.
The building will be situated so that the outdoor spaces, as well as the hotel and condominiums, which will have operable windows, will be able to take advantage of natural ventilation provided by the breezes across Lady Bird Lake during the summer. The hotel and condominium tower will have deep, recessed balconies and broad extrusions on the south and west facing elevations, which will shield the sun in the summer while allowing it to penetrate deeper into the building in the winter.
The development will tap into Austin Energy’s district cooling system, a large thermal energy storage system that produces ice during the night when electricity is cheapest. Then uses that ice the next day as chilled water that acts as a coolant for the heating, venting and air-conditioning system. Heat will be harvested from the returning water before it reaches the central plant by a water-source heat pump. This heat will then be used for the domestic hot water in the hotel and condominiums, dramatically reducing consumption of fossil fuels by the building’s central boiler plant.
Other firms involved in Block 21 are Rios Clementi Hale Studios of West Hollywood, California, which is designing the interior of the music venue. Dallas based BOKA Powell will serve as the architect of record. Construction began in May, with completion slated for 2010.
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A ceremonial groundbreaking was held today for the 270-unit BartonPlace condo project on Barton Springs Road.
Constructive Ventures, the Austin-based group behind such developments as The Pedernales, 2124 and Saltillo Lofts, is developing BartonPlace in conjunction with local restaurateur Rick Engel. The project is going up near Engel's Austin Java restaurant on Barton Springs.
Construction on the project designed by Dallas-based Boka Powell is expected to take 18 to 22 months.
Perry Lorenz, one of the partners of Constructive Ventures, says the company has already collected $45 million in non-refundable earnest money contracts for units in the development.
"Our robust pre-construction sales show clearly that the condominium market in Austin remains very strong," says Lorenz. "The bottom line is that this is a great location in a solid market, and our team has the proven ability to deliver a unique, high-quality product here. BartonPlace will be a distinctively cool new Austin address."
Lorenz said the development team also altered their initial plans to comply with Austin's Town Lake Overlay and Neighborhood Compatibility Standard. "We worked hard for a very long time to make sure that we earned the support of the nearby neighborhoods and businesses - that we were building a community here that would be viewed as a positive addition to the area," says Lorenz. "It took almost two years to create a project that everyone could support, but we did it, and we're very proud of it."
www.bartonplaceaustin.com
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