Mortenson Construction officially completed Phase II of the Bill Snyder Stadium Master Plan on the Kansas State University campus in Manhattan, Kan., on August 21, 2013. The transformation was completed ahead of schedule, a full week before the defending Big 12 Champion Wildcats take on two-time defending FCS?National Champion North Dakota State in the first game of the season.
The largest project in K-State Athletics history will greatly improve the game-day experience for Kansas State University fans with new amenities, concessions, ADA seating, restrooms, premium seating, improved media and broadcast facilities, new field lighting – levels meet Bowl Championship Series (BCS) Games and high-definition TV broadcast requirements, a Hall of Fame, plaza improvements, and an enhanced tailgating experience.
"The Mortenson | GE Johnson team put an impressive amount of work in place in an aggressive eight-month time frame," said Derek Cunz, vice president at Mortenson Construction. "This accomplishment would not have been possible without the seamless collaboration between the design team, construction team, trade partners, University facilities and University athletics."
Other contributing factors cited by Cunz include:
- Selection of Mortenson | GE Johnson as the single CM for the entire project, including FF&E, food service, signage, and furniture.
- Early involvement between planning and design.
- Focus on interim milestones.
- Integration of Virtual Design and Construction into the daily planning.
- Prefabrication of many exterior elements, plumbing, mechanical, and electrical.
- Mortenson | GE Johnson self-performed the concrete and site work to manage the schedule, safety, and quality from the beginning of the project.
"We've sold a record number of season tickets," said K-State's Athletics Director, John Currie. "We'll have the most fans ever to come to the stadium this season, about 400,000, and set the all-time attendance record. We appreciate our partners Mortenson and GE Johnson and the great job they've done for our fans." Tickets for the opening game on Friday against North Dakota State are sold-out.
Project Statistics
- 218,000 square feet of new construction
- 12,000 cubic yards of concrete
- 78,000 square feet of stone veneer
- 390 peak workers on site every day during construction
- 750,000+ craftworker hours worked
- 1,250 tons of rebar
- 479 days to build Kansas State's Northwest Gateway
- 2,500 tons of structural and misc steel
- 44 new private suites
- 37 new loge boxes
- 713 new club seats
- 56 bid packages / trade partners
- New lighting for East & West parking lots
- Entire project funded by donors, premium seat gifts, and athletics revenue; NO State or University dollars.
- Demolition of the existing press box December 15, 2012; first game being played August 30, 2013.
- Zero disruptions/cancellations of events due to construction
Other team members include: AECOM / HEERY, Henderson Engineers, Olsson Associates, Bigelow Consulting, LeJeune Steel, Torgeson Electric, Central Mechanical, Bamford Fire Protection, Midwest Drywall, Gallegos Stone, Performance Masonry, Griffith Lumber, and Manko Windows.
Related Stories
| Jul 1, 2014
Zaha Hadid's flowing Heydar Aliyev Center named Design of the Year for 2014
The Design Museum's Design of the Year award has been awarded to Zaha Hadid's Heydar Aliyev Center. Hadid is not only the first woman to win the top prize, but the center is the first architectural project to win the overall competition.
| Jun 30, 2014
Autodesk acquires design studio The Living, will create Autodesk Studio
The Living, David Benjamin's design studio, has been acquired by Autodesk. Combined, the two will create the Autodesk Studio, which will "create new types of buildings, public installations, prototypes and architectural environments."
| Jun 30, 2014
San Antonio green lights multimodal transit center
The new 90,000-sf development will principally service San Antonio’s growing network of city bus and VIA PRIMO bus rapid transit service, including real-time arrival updates, as well as become an iconic public plaza for the city.
| Jun 30, 2014
Philip Johnson’s iconic World's Fair 'Tent of Tomorrow' to receive much needed restoration funding
A neglected Queens landmark that once reflected the "excitement and hopefulness" at the beginning of the Space Age may soon be restored.
| Jun 30, 2014
Research finds continued growth of design-build throughout United States
New research findings indicate that for the first time more than half of projects above $10 million are being completed through design-build project delivery.
| Jun 30, 2014
Narrow San Francisco lots to be developed into micro-units
As a solution to San Francisco’s density and low housing supply compared to demand, local firms Build Inc. and Macy Architecture each are to build micro-unit housing in a small parcel of land in Hayes Valley.
| Jun 30, 2014
Arup's vision of the future of rail: driverless trains, maintenance drones, and automatic freight delivery
In its Future of Rail 2050 report, Arup reveals a vision of the future of rail travel in light of trends such as urban population growth, climate change, and emerging technologies.
| Jun 30, 2014
4 design concepts that remake the urban farmer's market
The American Institute of Architects held a competition to solve the farmer's markets' biggest design dilemma: lightweight, bland canopies that although convenient, does not protect much from the elements.
| Jun 30, 2014
Harvard releases the State of the Nation’s Housing 2014
Although the housing industry saw notable increases in construction, home prices, and sales in 2013, household growth has yet to fully recover from the effects of the recession, according to a new Harvard University report.
| Jun 30, 2014
OMA's The Interlace honored as one of the world's most 'community-friendly' high-rises
The 1,040-unit apartment complex in Singapore has won the inaugural Urban Habitat award from the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, which highlights projects that demonstrate a positive contribution to the surrounding environment.
