Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community Tribal Government Complex - Phoenix, AZ
This new three-story government facility provides a centralized location for community members to conduct government business while also attempting to embrace the local design language. The original design called for the south- and west-facing walls of the buildings to be constructed out of cast-in-place concrete. However, having a three-story battered wall of cast-in-place concrete posed obvious challenges of quality, cost and schedule.
Precast concrete solved these concerns but posed another challenge; it looked too perfect and didn’t integrate with the cast-in-place concrete that already existed. By utilizing the highly flexible nature of precast concrete, the architect and the construction team innovatively developed a series of reveals, colors, and textures to create precast panels that successfully emulated the style of battered earth walls. The resulting structure represents the local culture and values while offering all the cost and placement advantages of precast concrete.
Architect: SmithGroup, Phoenix, AZ
Precast Contractor: Coreslab Structures, Inc., Phoenix, AZ
Awards: 2009 PCI Award – Best Public/Institutional Building
