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Douglas County Public Works
Douglas County Public Works
Douglas County, KS, United States
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Other Projects by clark | huesemann
Douglas County Public Works
Douglas County, KS, United States
Firm
Type
STATUS
Built
YEAR
2015
SIZE
25,000 sqft - 100,000 sqft
BUDGET
$10M - 50M
This new public works campus combines the public works operations and crews, engineering divisions, and zoning and codes into one consolidated location in the county. The new campus sits on approximately 14 developed acres, with 8 new buildings.
From engineering offices serving the public to salt and sand storage facilities the variety of functions provided for is wide. Here you’ll find: Administration, engineering, code review, planning, zoning and public meeting rooms next to operations and field crews, materials testing, sign fabrication shops, fleet maintenance and management, chemical storage, sales for noxious weeds, and heavy equipment storage.
Site inspiration:
Farmsteads, early models for practical site design and functional layout, arrange themselves in the rural landscape with a familiar logic, a pattern language of their own that represents early evidence of an architecture responsive to climate and location. The public works campus, inspired by the farmsteads of the central states follows this logic, placing the buildings with enough space around them for the safe movement of heavy equipment while locating different functions as close together as possible for the efficient movement of people and materials and the economical use of the site.
This grouping also forms a protected outdoor environment for cold weather work. The buildings are placed to shield the yard from northern storms, protecting the outdoor working areas, and orientated to capitalize on natural ventilation. The site design focuses on demonstration storm water management practices. Native grasses and low maintenance landscaping surround the perimeter of the work yard.
A main drive bisects the site running east to west organizing the traffic and providing a convenient access point “mid-way” to the yard allowing for less turns and flow through traffic for heavy equipment particularly in a snow event. Internal circulation is organized for ease of visibility, turning radii, and functionality.
Beyond the metal shed:
The predominant construction type is pre-engineered metal building construction. Typically the use of pre-engineered structures is seen as economical but often design constrained. This project captures the positive characteristics of using pre-engineered structures while demonstrating that the design of environments, even those seen as utilitarian, can be great places to do the important work of our society.
The design principles are purposely simple and straightforward. The people who work here work hard, are resourceful and value a simple and straightforward approach to work. Simplicity is expressed in the structural design though subtle changes were made to the basic pre-engineered “package.” Braces were hidden, corner details revised, all to actually simplify the typical approaches to how materials come together in buildings like this.
Concepts:
At arrival to the site, the public portion of the complex rises out of the natural hill to communicate approach, prominence and main entry. Upon entering the site the visitor can see the main administration building and entry into the public parking lot is obvious as the first place to turn in. The remaining structures serving the public are prominent and noticeable to facilitate way-finding for visitors.
The form backs up into the hillside, shielding the yard from northern storms, protecting the outdoor work areas, and minimizing the impact of northern exposure on the performance of the envelope. Deep overhangs not only protect the interior environment from unwanted heat gain they also protect equipment and workers against the elements such as driving rain and UV exposure. Fenestration and related openings are positioned to capitalize on natural daylight and ventilation.
While the complex serves a wide variety of functions the design creates a group of buildings that work together, a campus of related, familial structures.
Building design:
Material selection followed a “repurposing” of the materials that the county crews find themselves around and designing with on a day to day basis. Steel, wood, concrete and yes, dirt formed the palette for the building. The refashioning of these materials into a modern work environment created a connected yet appropriate internal work environment.
County crews are some of the hardest workers on the planet. They are, very resourceful, building much of what they need to do their work for many of the past years in their previous locations. They were excited to get the opportunity to get training on how to construct rammed earth walls for their own facility. Crews of ten worked to complete the rammed earth wall that runs the length of the offices from engineering to operations tying the offices together.
The overall project is environmentally responsive both conceptually and practically. Designed to be LEED certified, it incorporates daylight harvesting for energy savings and views for inhabitants. Reclaimed wood is installed as a ceiling surface. High efficiency heating and cooling systems serve within a high performance-building envelope.
Socially, the engineers and operations crews are connected under the same roof, connected spatially, and also symbolically through he use of common materials they all share and with the rammed earth wall they constructed.
From engineering offices serving the public to salt and sand storage facilities the variety of functions provided for is wide. Here you’ll find: Administration, engineering, code review, planning, zoning and public meeting rooms next to operations and field crews, materials testing, sign fabrication shops, fleet maintenance and management, chemical storage, sales for noxious weeds, and heavy equipment storage.
Site inspiration:
Farmsteads, early models for practical site design and functional layout, arrange themselves in the rural landscape with a familiar logic, a pattern language of their own that represents early evidence of an architecture responsive to climate and location. The public works campus, inspired by the farmsteads of the central states follows this logic, placing the buildings with enough space around them for the safe movement of heavy equipment while locating different functions as close together as possible for the efficient movement of people and materials and the economical use of the site.
This grouping also forms a protected outdoor environment for cold weather work. The buildings are placed to shield the yard from northern storms, protecting the outdoor working areas, and orientated to capitalize on natural ventilation. The site design focuses on demonstration storm water management practices. Native grasses and low maintenance landscaping surround the perimeter of the work yard.
A main drive bisects the site running east to west organizing the traffic and providing a convenient access point “mid-way” to the yard allowing for less turns and flow through traffic for heavy equipment particularly in a snow event. Internal circulation is organized for ease of visibility, turning radii, and functionality.
Beyond the metal shed:
The predominant construction type is pre-engineered metal building construction. Typically the use of pre-engineered structures is seen as economical but often design constrained. This project captures the positive characteristics of using pre-engineered structures while demonstrating that the design of environments, even those seen as utilitarian, can be great places to do the important work of our society.
The design principles are purposely simple and straightforward. The people who work here work hard, are resourceful and value a simple and straightforward approach to work. Simplicity is expressed in the structural design though subtle changes were made to the basic pre-engineered “package.” Braces were hidden, corner details revised, all to actually simplify the typical approaches to how materials come together in buildings like this.
Concepts:
At arrival to the site, the public portion of the complex rises out of the natural hill to communicate approach, prominence and main entry. Upon entering the site the visitor can see the main administration building and entry into the public parking lot is obvious as the first place to turn in. The remaining structures serving the public are prominent and noticeable to facilitate way-finding for visitors.
The form backs up into the hillside, shielding the yard from northern storms, protecting the outdoor work areas, and minimizing the impact of northern exposure on the performance of the envelope. Deep overhangs not only protect the interior environment from unwanted heat gain they also protect equipment and workers against the elements such as driving rain and UV exposure. Fenestration and related openings are positioned to capitalize on natural daylight and ventilation.
While the complex serves a wide variety of functions the design creates a group of buildings that work together, a campus of related, familial structures.
Building design:
Material selection followed a “repurposing” of the materials that the county crews find themselves around and designing with on a day to day basis. Steel, wood, concrete and yes, dirt formed the palette for the building. The refashioning of these materials into a modern work environment created a connected yet appropriate internal work environment.
County crews are some of the hardest workers on the planet. They are, very resourceful, building much of what they need to do their work for many of the past years in their previous locations. They were excited to get the opportunity to get training on how to construct rammed earth walls for their own facility. Crews of ten worked to complete the rammed earth wall that runs the length of the offices from engineering to operations tying the offices together.
The overall project is environmentally responsive both conceptually and practically. Designed to be LEED certified, it incorporates daylight harvesting for energy savings and views for inhabitants. Reclaimed wood is installed as a ceiling surface. High efficiency heating and cooling systems serve within a high performance-building envelope.
Socially, the engineers and operations crews are connected under the same roof, connected spatially, and also symbolically through he use of common materials they all share and with the rammed earth wall they constructed.
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