The Crystal Public Works Facility is a replacement of the City’s existing outdated buildings and under-sized site. This new facility will move the City’s operations to a larger, more efficient site on West Broadway Avenue. This will greatly enhance the function of Public Works by housing their entire vehicle fleet in heated covered storage and providing a state-of-the-art maintenance garage and shop areas. The building will unify separate operations into one building, including Streets, Parks, Utilities, and Maintenance.
The project makes a unique design statement of an ordinary utilitarian building using simple economical materials such as pre-cast concrete, metal panels, and painted steel. Large areas of windows and angled colored metal panels define the more people-centered spaces such as the lunchroom, meeting rooms, and offices. The color geometry and large glazing are in contrast to the large box-like mechanics and truck bays defined by pre-cast panels and vehicle doors.
Housing several departments, it was imperative to create spaces which allow flexibility for a variety of programmatic functions and potential for future expansion.
The Kodet team provided multiple design options for the City of Crystal to compare costs, size, operations, and efficiencies for their public works campus. Each scheme weighed the ‘pros’ and ‘cons’ as well as a comparison of site + building size.
