Now Here’s the Way to Break Ground on a New Facility
- Written by jlockwood
- Posted on November 9, 2011.
- Filed under Architecture BWBR News Planning
- Tagged as vehicle maintenance facility, national guard building, army national guard, military installation development, minnesota national guard, leed, sustainable campus development, military vehicle garage.
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The shovel can be so cliché.
OK. The shovel was used. Admittedly, it’s hard to dig from the perch of a turret. But, the view is kind of cool, especially for those of us who don’t get to sit in one of these very often.
On Tuesday, the Minnesota Army National Guard broke ground on its new Field Maintenance Shop at the Arden Hills Army Training Site (AHATS) in Arden Hills, Minn. The new 109,000 s.f. operations building will provide needed upgrades to the maintenance work spaces and administrative offices, storage areas and support spaces in one state-of-the-art facility. It is a major component in the development of the AHATS as a premier Army and National Guard training site.
As a state-of-the-art building, it is designed for its technical use as a vehicle maintenance facility for the Guard’s tanks, troop carriers, trucks, humvees, and radar equipment; and it is expected to exceed the Guard’s mandate for achieving LEED-NC Silver Certification for energy use and sustainable design.
When you examine what the National Guard is doing nationally, the pursuit of LEED is significant and could provide a model for other guard units developing new campuses. Using the Xcel Energy’s Enhanced Design Assistance program, extensive energy modeling and analysis has been conducted to guide the design of daylighting systems, efficiency of the building shell, and selection of energy efficient resources. Models indicate the building will achieve 43% energy savings better than code guidelines.
Additive bid items have been incorporated for alternative energy systems – solar thermal, photovoltaic, and future connection to a potential geothermal system.
The campus also stands out for its location in a growing suburban community. Campus aesthetics will help the campus fit in with surrounding residential neighborhoods, and, to that end, the design of the building complements surrounding buildings, including the Grow the Army Readiness Center and neighboring Ramsey County/City of Arden Hills Public Works Facility.
Construction is expected to be complete in 2012.