The Virginia State Police will soon begin driver training in a new $27.4 million complex set on 680 acres near Fort Pickett, just outside the town of Blackstone. Designed by Dewberry and constructed by KBS Inc., the facility includes 4.5 miles of urban, rural, and interstate roadway courses that simulate Virginia topography; a three-story, 52,000-sf training and dormitory building; an observation tower; and a vehicle maintenance garage.
The new training tracks feature a variety of road configurations, including a cloverleaf ramp, city intersections, interstate acceleration lanes, a roundabout, railroad tracks, a 25,000-sf skidpan, cul-de-sacs, and a 342,000-sf precision-driving course. The facility enables the police to combine behind-the-wheel training with simulations and classroom instruction at one site.
The training building includes 60 squad rooms that accommodate up to 120 cadets, theater-style classrooms, a cafeteria, offices, meeting space, and a driver simulation room with 550 LE Interactive Driving Simulation Systems that model the cockpit of a police cruiser.
Construction of a new firing range is set to begin this spring. The building was also designed to serve as an alternate emergency operations center for the Virginia State Police.
Design of the building combines brick, precast architectural block, and glass curtainwall. “The architecture reflects the modern, state-of-the-art training approach provided by the Virginia State Police, with a streamlined academic aesthetic in the materials and vertical elements,” says Larry Hasson, AIA, who led the architectural design team for Dewberry. In addition to architecture, Dewberry provided interior design and mechanical/electrical, structural, civil, and environmental engineering. +
Related Stories
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Construction Management Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Jacobs, Barton Malow, Hill International top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest construction management and project management firms in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Contractors [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Turner, Whiting-Turner, Skanska top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest contractors in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
Engineering firms look to bolster growth through new services, technology [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Following solid revenue growth in 2013, the majority of U.S.-based engineering and engineering/architecture firms expect more of the same this year, according to BD+C’s 2014 Giants 300 report.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Engineering/Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Jacobs, AECOM, Parsons Brinckerhoff top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest engineering/architecture firms in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Engineering Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Fluor, Arup, Day & Zimmermann top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest engineering firms in the United States.
| 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 harmful trade-off many U.S. green buildings make
The Urban Green Council addresses a concern that many "green" buildings in the U.S. have: poor insulation.
| 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 2, 2014
The doctor is in the firehouse: New clinic to be built in California fire station
Designed by WRNS Studio, the Firehouse Clinic will encourage local residents with limited healthcare access to consider them as an alternative to the emergency room, especially for preventive care.
