While the new hub for varsity athletics at the University of Cincinnati could have been located on any unoccupied portion of the campus, the choice was made to locate the new structure literally at the heart of the athletics complex, in a narrow gap between a stadium and a large indoor arena between academic and athletic zones. The structure’s unusual curvilinear shape is designed to take advantage of the tight constraints and geography of the site, resulting in dynamic residual spaces between the building and the existing stadium, sports fields, and recreation center. more

The five-story Athletics Center acts as a unifying hub for the complex array of adjacent existing buildings. The building also contains offices on the top floors, an auditorium, museum, gift shop, practice gymnasium, sports medicine facilities, training rooms, and locker rooms below ground. The atrium at the core of the Athletics Center becomes a central terminal for athletic events, housing a centralized ticket office and acting as a filter for students, coaches, and administrators.

Several other constraints contributed to the architectural concept, including an existing below-ground mechanical area that had to be column-free, and a requirement for access to the adjacent buildings' loading docks. In order to provide the clear spans dictated by these site conditions, the design called for a stiff perimeter, an "exoskeleton" that allows the envelope to act as a continuous truss bridging the spaces below. A diagonal grid frame, or "diagrid," was developed—a highly efficient structural system in which column elements are laid out in a diagonal pattern at relatively close spacing. The envelope's triangulated expression reinforces the concept of the contextual free form as well as the building's "athletic" character. back

Credits

SCHEDULE
Commission, summer 2001
Completion, spring 2006
SIZE
236,000 sq. feet
BUDGET
$53,000,000
CLIENT
University of Cincinnati
PHOTOGRAPHY
Peter Mauss/Esto, Andrew Higley
TEAM
Lead Designer: Bernard Tschumi. Key Personnel: Kim Starr, Phu Hoang, Robert Holton, Jane Kim, Jonathan Chace, Nicholas Martin, Eva Sopeoglou, Joel Aviles, Chong-zi Cheng, Irene Cheng, Adam Dayem, William Feuerman, Thomas Goodwill, Daniel Holguin, Matthew Hufft, Michaela Metcalf, Valentin Bontjes van Beek, Allis Chee, Justin Moore. Associated Architects: Glaserworks: Arthur A. Hupp, Michael J. Moose, Kevin Morris, Mark Thurnauer, David Zelman, Rick Fohl, Travis Bechtel, Michael Maltinsky, Rob Hibbard, Matt Mattono, Martin Rose, Mincho Petkov, Ravit Kaplan, David Besso back

Program: Cultural, Educational