UW-Madison Recreation & Wellbeing Center Enhances Student Experience
MILWAUKEE, WI / OTIE performed structural engineering for a 270,980 SF, new replacement facility which includes a wellness center with services such as massage therapy and meditation and a teaching kitchen for nutrition programs. There is also a new gift-funded Sub-Zero Ice Arena, a 25-yard recreational swimming pool, eight basketball courts, indoor track, fitness space, and racquetball courts.
A highlight of the project is an internal floating staircase that required an innovative design. The singular column support provides a completely open view from the stairway, highlighting the central stair from many different areas of the gym. Due to the open concept of the facility, the staircase is a feature design element of the space.
The facility’s structure is a steel-framed system with several large deep-span trusses over the courts and pool to allow large open spaces. The priorities on the entire design where to include an easy-to-navigate space in an efficient and unique facility.
Highlights
- Inclusion of idyllic views of Lake Mendota and the Lakeshore Path
- Incorporation of daylight throughout the building
- Wellbeing suite serves as a satellite for other healthcare providers on campus
Services
- Structural Engineering
Challenges and solutions.
Innovative solutions were required for the framing of the Western side of the large curtain wall support over the green roof. Columns were removed for aesthetic purposes, which required complex beam framing to provide adequate support especially at the very corner of the facility. The result is a striking curtain wall feature that has a floating feel to it due to the cantilevered beams
