Construction has begun on the first Ismaili Center in the U.S. in Houston. The facility will serve Ismaili Muslims in and around Houston, which has the largest concentration of Ismaili Muslims in the United States with over 40,000 members.
The Ismaili Center will consist of 11 acres of gardens, courtyards, and terraces and a 150,000 sf, five-story, tripartite building featuring three eivans, or elevated open terraces. The building will include a main atrium, interior courtyards open to the sky, a prayer room or jamatkhana, library, social hall, exhibit hall, council chamber, black box theatre, classrooms, administrative offices, and a café and kitchen for catering events. The center also features a 155,000 sf, 600-car garage beneath the gardens.
Details reflect Islamic design and its historically rooted, rich architectural heritage, combined with Western design that fits Houston’s climate. The building’s exterior is made of matte, sand-colored marble, crafted to create a clean patchwork of tessellated patterns. Ultra-high-performance concrete panels from Monterrey, Mexico compose the atrium, while light-colored stone from Turkey mimics the look of Texas limestone.
Perforated concrete with German glass glazing behind it allows natural light to pour in while keeping the building cool. The building will glow at night, lit from within. All concrete on the project, including sidewalks, feature custom finishes.
The center’s prayer hall, measuring 115 by 115 feet, features a perforated metal ceiling, with three layers of millwork along the walls. The lobby has board form walls, where custom-cut strips of wood are installed at 29-degree angles to create a unique pattern. The eivans are supported by 49 star-shaped columns, the tallest of which is 50 feet.
The design had sustainability in mind and the owners will seek LEED Gold certification. The campus is located adjacent to the Buffalo Bayou and within a flood zone. The building itself is above the flood plain, and the privacy wall that surrounds the gardens allows water in to mitigate flooding in the surrounding area. Landscaping is designed to withstand a flood, and native plants in the garden will work to filter stormwater.
The project is using a 3-D model to ensure each part of the construction process is well coordinated, and a robotic total station created the layout of the jobsite, removing user error and ensuring that all aspects of the site are accurate, according to a news release. McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. broke ground on the project in October 2021, with completion expected in the fourth quarter of 2024.
On the building team:
Owner and/or developer: Ismaili/Ismaili Council for the United States
Design architect: Farshid Moussavi Architecture, collaborating with DLR Group
Architect of record: DLR Group, gardens are designed by Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects
MEP engineer: DLR Group
Structural engineer: DLR Group, collaborating with AKT II Engineers
General contractor/construction manager: McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. (Houston office)
Related Stories
| Aug 11, 2010
University of La Verne opens new campus center designed by Gonzalez Goodale Architects
Construction has been completed on a new campus center designed by the noted Pasadena-based institutional architecture firm Gonzalez Goodale Architects for University of La Verne that will help create a new identity for the venerable institution. The Sara & Michael Abraham Campus Center will be dedicated on September 10 at 3 p.m., in a ceremony attended by campus officials and other local dignitaries.
| Aug 11, 2010
Thom Mayne unveils 'floating cube' design for the Perot Museum of Nature and Science in Dallas
Calling it a “living educational tool featuring architecture inspired by nature and science,” Pritzker Prize Laureate Thom Mayne and leaders from the Museum of Nature & Science unveiled the schematic designs and building model for the Perot Museum of Nature & Science at Victory Park. Groundbreaking on the approximately $185 million project will be held later this fall, and the Museum is expected to open by early 2013.
| Aug 11, 2010
SOM's William F. Baker awarded Fritz Leonhardt Prize for achievement in structural engineering
In recognition of his engineering accomplishments, which include many of the tallest skyscrapers of our time, William F. Baker received the coveted Fritz Leonhardt Prize in Stuttgart, Germany. He is the first American to receive the prize.
| Aug 11, 2010
Theater Renovation—A First-Class Production
In 1985, the city of San Diego ordered the historic Balboa Theatre, its beleaguered performing arts center, to be shuttered due to seismic safety concerns. It would take another two decades to restore the landmark building.
| Aug 11, 2010
Green roof professional designation launches in Canada
Green Roofs for Healthy Cities (GRHC), the North American Green Roof Industry Association, is pleased to announce the Canadian Green Roof Professional (GRP) Accreditation launch on October 19, 2009 at the CitiesAlive World Green Roof Infrastructure Congress in Toronto, Canada, hosted by GRHC, the City of Toronto, and the World Green Roof Infrastructure Network.
| Aug 11, 2010
American Concrete Institute forms technical committee on BIM for concrete structures
The American Concrete Institute (ACI) announces the formation of a new technical committee on Building Information Modeling (BIM) of Concrete Structures.
| Aug 11, 2010
Former Colorado Governor Bill Owens retained by PCL Construction as senior advisor
Bill Owens, former Colorado Governor, has been retained by PCL Construction as senior advisor for the company’s U.S. operations, headquartered in Denver, Colorado. The PCL family of companies collectively form the seventh largest contracting organization in the U.S. with major offices in 29 locations across North America, the Hawaiian Islands, and the Caribbean.
| Aug 11, 2010
Kansas City Music Hall and Municipal Auditorium
Kansas City, Mo.
The show will go on in Kansas City’s beloved Music Hall and Municipal Auditorium thanks to a fast-track renovation and expansion project that brought the 72-year-old Art Deco playhouse up to 21st-century standards.
