The recently completed Prairie Activity and Recreation Center (PARC) in Plainfield, Ill., is projected to be the first building of its kind to achieve the Passive House Institute US PHIUS+ Source Zero certification.
Designed as a net zero facility, the two-story, 37,000-sf building features a 4,000-sf fitness center and studio with a full-size basketball court, an elevated 10-lap walking track, a 1,600-sf multi-purpose room for classes and special events, and a preschool suite. The preschool suite includes a dedicated reception area and entrance and four classrooms with high windows and “look nooks” (low picture windows that connect the children to the natural surroundings outside).
The PARC is 65% more efficient than a conventional commercial building of the same size in a similar climate. It includes a 28,600-sf solar array and a highly insulating building envelope. A Building Performance monitor at the front entry will share building energy use and solar energy production information with visitors.
Exterior building features include LED site lighting, rain gardens, native landscaping, parking for 110 vehicles, a recreation patio for the preschool, and walking trails. The PARC is the newest addition to the Bott Park complex, which includes a playground, ball fields, and soccer fields.
Related Stories
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Gensler, Perkins+Will, NBBJ top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest architecture firms in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
2014 Giants 300 Report
Building Design+Construction magazine's annual ranking the nation's largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S.
| Jul 17, 2014
A new, vibrant waterfront for the capital
Plans to improve Washington D.C.'s Potomac River waterfront by Maine Ave. have been discussed for years. Finally, The Wharf has started its first phase of construction.
| Jul 8, 2014
Does Zaha Hadid’s Tokyo Olympic Stadium have a design flaw?
After being criticized for the cost and size of her stadium design for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, a Japanese architect points out a major design flaw in the stadium that may endanger the spectators.
| Jul 8, 2014
Frank Lloyd Wright's posthumous gas station opens in Buffalo
Eighty-seven years after Frank Lloyd Wright designed an ornamental gas station for the city of Buffalo, the structure has been built and opened to the public—inside an auto museum.
| Jul 7, 2014
7 emerging design trends in brick buildings
From wild architectural shapes to unique color blends and pattern arrangements, these projects demonstrate the design possibilities of brick.
| Jul 7, 2014
A climate-controlled city is Dubai's newest colossal project
To add to Dubai's already impressive portfolio of world's tallest tower and world's largest natural flower garden, Dubai Holding has plans to build the world's largest climate-controlled city.
| Jul 3, 2014
Arthur Ashe Stadium the latest to tap Birdair
The United States Tennis Association (USTA) and ROSSETTI, the architect of record for the Arthur Ashe Stadium, tapped Birdair to supply a 210,000-square-foot, PTFE membrane, retractable roof, expected to be installed by 2016.
| Jul 2, 2014
First Look: Qatar World Cup stadium design references nomadic heritage
Organizers of the Qatar 2022 World Cup, the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, recently unveiled designs for the second stadium.
| Jul 2, 2014
Emerging trends in commercial flooring
Rectangular tiles, digital graphic applications, the resurgence of terrazzo, and product transparency headline today’s commercial flooring trends.
