The Huntsville (Ala.) Botanical Garden held a groundbreaking ceremony on January 20 for a $13 million, 30,000-sf Guest Welcome Center that, when completed next year, will be a second piece in the Garden’s five-point growth strategy.
Turner Construction, which provided preconstruction services, was tapped to build the Welcome Center. Turner has been a presence in Huntsville for more than 60 years, and its projects there include the Davidson Center for Space Exploration, and the Huntsville Public Library.
The Building Team on the Welcome Center includes Matheny Goldmon Architecture + Interiors (architect and designer), 4Site Incorporated, PEC Structural Engineering, and SSOE Group.
The 112-acre Huntsville Botanical Garden, which opened on May 21, 1988, receives an estimated 350,000 visitors annually. Its attractions include its butterfly house, Grand Railway, and Dogwood trail. The 4.6-acre site on which the Welcome Center is being built had previously been used for parking.
The Welcome Center is one of five expansion components in the Garden’s Master Plan, created by Landscape Architect Tres Fromme of 3.fromme DESIGN, Sanford, Fla. The others are new parking and an enhanced entrance, which have been completed; enhancements to the existing gardens; a new Column Courtyard with 10 remaining columns from the Old Madison County Courthouse, which was demolished in the 1960s; and a new Education Center, to be used primarily for children’s programs, environmental and sustainability education, and a certification program for professionals.
The Welcome Center is designed to resemble a traditional Southern-style home. The building will consist of three rental facilities: A Grand Hall that can accommodate up to 350 guests, a more casual Carriage House, which can hold more than 200 guests, and a glass Conservatory, for up to 40 guests.
The Welcome Center will also include a 3,500-sf check-in area, as well as a café and gift shop. The second-floor mezzanine will include exhibit space as well as offices, storage, and conference space.
Turner says it will employ BIM technology on this project “to deliver the highest quality result in the shortest amount of time.” The building should be completed by early next year, and next month the nonprofit Huntsville-Madison County Botanical Garden Society plans to start taking reservations for 2017 events.
The Garden's Master Plan calls for adding to existing gardens, and building an Education Center. Image: 3.fromme DESIGN/Courtesy of Huntsville Botanical Garden Society.
Image: Matheny Goldmon + Interiors
Image: Matheny Goldmon + Interiors
Related Stories
| Jul 3, 2012
TOLK now called Dewberry
The renaming indicates a simplification in Dewberry’s corporate naming conventions.
| Jul 2, 2012
Bernards building mixed-use project in Beverly Hills
The project includes 88 luxury apartment homes atop a 14,000-sf Trader Joe’s market and a new coffee shop.
| Jul 2, 2012
San Francisco lays claim to the greenest building in North America
The 13-floor building can hold around 900 people, but consumes 60% less water and 32% less energy than most buildings of its kind.
| Jul 2, 2012
Plumosa School of the Arts earns LEED Gold
Education project dedicated to teaching sustainability in the classroom.
| Jun 29, 2012
SOM writes a new chapter at Cincinnati’s The Christ Hospital
The 332,000–sf design draws on the predominantly red brick character of The Christ Hospital’s existing buildings, interpreting it in a fresh and contemporary manner that fits well within the historic Mt. Auburn neighborhood while reflecting the institution’s dedication to experience, efficiency, flexibility, innovation and brand.
| Jun 29, 2012
Benjamin Moore Paints announces new CEO
Robert S. Merritt comes to Benjamin Moore with over three decades of management experience in the restaurant and food preparation and distribution industries
| Jun 29, 2012
Guardian launches industry’s first glass visualizer for interior design
Online tool allows designers to explore the possibilities of glass.
| Jun 28, 2012
Federal applications of renewable energy
U.S. Army Fort Knox: Using the Earth for space heating and cooling. The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) facilitates the Federal Government’s implementation of sound, cost-effective energy management and investment practices to enhance the nation’s energy security and environmental stewardship.
| Jun 27, 2012
HDR opens office in Beijing
The Beijing office is HDR’s second location in China; the firm’s other office is in Shanghai.
| Jun 27, 2012
KBE Building wins honor for Armed Forces Reserve Center
The construction phase was completed in just 16 months.
