Allen Mayor Ken Fulk, former Mayor Stephen G. Terrell, City Manager Eric Ellwanger, the Allen City Council and Board, officials with various city departments, and representatives from AP and Barker Rinker Seacat Architecture (BRS) participated in the ceremonial groundbreaking at the site of the new building.
“We have a long, established history of working with local Texas governments to build municipal recreation projects that meet community needs and stay within budget,” said Will Pender, Regional President for AP. “We collaborated closely with the City of Allen throughout the preconstruction and estimating process to make the most out of taxpayer dollars while also ensuring the project is built in a safe, timely manner. We’re very excited to see this project come to fruition.”
On June 8, Allen City Council approved $40.4 million to begin construction, culminating five years of collaboration between the city and its residents. AP and BRS recently joined efforts for design and construction purposes. Project planning began in May 2016 when Allen voters approved $27 million in bond funding for Parks and Recreation capital projects, including $16 million proposed for a future park and recreation center.
“This day is the culmination of more than 20 years of strategic planning and input from countless community members,” Fulk said. “This facility will be a true community gathering place, and we are thrilled to see it finally come to fruition.”
“From beautiful parks and trails to top-notch facilities, amenities like this are what set Allen apart and make it one of the best places to live in the nation,” Terrell said. “I’m grateful to have represented this fine city for nearly three decades, and I am deeply honored to see that legacy live on through this project.”
Slated to open in early 2023, the recreation center’s amenities were strategically selected by Allen residents through public meetings, workshops, and online surveys. Amenities include two gymnasiums with three recreation courts and up to eight competitive play courts, an indoor walk/jog track with both flat and inclined stair options, weights and cardio areas for independent fitness, and group fitness areas for aerobics, dance, and spin classes.
Various indoor play spaces, an outdoor fitness deck, a community space with classrooms and collaborative areas, a children’s watch area, and a catering kitchen will allow additional spaces for the community to engage in a wide range of fitness and recreational activities. The facility will also include parking areas and driveways to accommodate Allen residents and their guests.
BRS was selected as the architect of record to work with the community in the fall of 2018. The Denver-based firm has a local office in nearby Grapevine and was chosen due to its extensive expertise and understanding of innovations in multi-generational recreation and community center design. BRS has completed dozens of recreation and community centers in Texas and hundreds across the country, each unique to its place and environment. BRS leveraged this experience by leading the initial public meetings to select the project amenities and developed the building's concept while working in collaboration with the city's steering committee and leadership team, culminating in a full architectural design focused on the community's character that is “Authentically Allen.”
“A key feature to the design was creating several gathering spaces of varying sizes to foster socialization, large and small, around the activity areas of the facility to bring people together," said Kevin Armstrong, Principal at Barker Rinker Seacat Architecture. "At the heart of the center is a large atrium with a vibrant indoor play tower that will extend up to a central rotunda filled with an abundance of natural daylight. This space is envisioned to be a community living room with a variety of areas for both play and rest for all ages. It’s a place that exemplifies the unity and vitality of the community."
AP has provided construction management services to several municipalities and governmental entities throughout Texas. Current and past projects include the city of Dallas’ North Dallas Government Center, the Marq for the city of Southlake, the Town of Little Elm for the city of Little Elm, Rockwall County Jail for the city of Rockwall, the Garland Audubon Recreation Center for the city of Garland, and the Potter County District Courts Building in Amarillo. Nationally, AP has completed more than 2.2 million square feet of construction work for municipalities and governmental entities since 2016.
Adolfson & Peterson Construction is a family-owned company that is ranked among the top construction managers and general contractors in the nation, while maintaining one of the safest records in the industry. AP offers preconstruction and construction services to the commercial, correctional, education, health care, hospitality, industrial, multifamily, municipal, recreation, and senior living market segments. The company's leaders support an employee base of over 675 who work from offices in Arizona, Colorado, Minnesota, Texas, and Wyoming.
