Jeff Temple, Building Committee Chair, along with Igort del Haya have a lot of progress to share –
Igort and I have been busy touring various indoor pickleball and tennis facilities. One in particular stood out and seems to be not only very well designed but built cost effectively. This is the Parker Racquet Club in Parker Colorado.
We had visited the Denver Tennis Center at D.U. as well as Parker. The architectural treatment of the exterior beams and the use of a variation of colors and textures made Parker really stand out. The air handling system at Parker seemed much superior to the one at the Denver Tennis Center. Parker was built for about half the Denver Tennis Center and is nearly the same size.
During our tour of the Parker facility, and in particular the welcome center, we noticed it had nearly all the elements we were looking for in our Steamboat design – but was much more efficient space wise. The facility was built for $6.4 million and they are about a third larger than our planned facility.
We have asked two architects to give us a bid on our redesign and told both that our design should resemble the Parker project – but would vary based on our site, snow loads, needs in the welcome center, pickleball courts versus tennis courts, etc.
To help expedite getting competitive bids (and to access lots of other information) we have made an arrangement to obtain information on Parker from its owner, Barry Riddle, especially the welcome center floor plans.
We have also been asked to facilitate groups of up to 100 people in the welcome center. The idea is that this would allow us to capture some significant contributions to our facility. This is a challenge, but we are studying it now. Both architects are extremely creative, and I look forward to seeing what they come up with.
To make the welcome center two stories is very expensive. Assembly of 100 people on the second floor would require elevators to meet ADA requirements as well as two staircases, and most likely additional bathrooms. Columns would need to be placed on the first floor to support the second floor. The current design for the welcome center is one story and includes a very open feel with high vaulted ceilings – which would go away with a two story design.
We think the larger assembly request can be accomplished on the main floor with a creative connection between the gathering space and the courts themselves. The courts (perhaps two) could be covered with a protective material and used for events.
Respectfully submitted,
Jeff Temple and Igort Del Haya
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