Nevada State College Activity and Administration Building

OWNER

Nevada System of Higher Education

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Construction Cost
$17 million

Completion Date
July 2015

Project Size
62,300 SF
4,800 SF adjacent central plant

Nevada State College Activity and Administration Building

Henderson
Nevada

With a total budget of over $39 million, Nevada State College has embarked on an ambitious expansion plan that includes the construction of two buildings and several improvements to campus.Tthe Student Activity and Administration building is a key piece of this expansion plan. This three story structure includes a library, study and examination rooms, a student dining facility, offices, large convention rooms, and a book store. With a very short design schedule, Walter P Moore was able to provide an efficient and elegant design for a steel, braced frame building.

The main architectural feature of the building is a partially stepped roof in the center that provides more natural light and allows higher ceiling space at important meeting rooms than would be provided by a flat roof. This stepped portion of the roof presents challenges from a structural point of view as it provides a discontinuity of the roof diaphragm. This problem was solved with close coordination with the architect, PGAL, by strategically placing braced frames that will prevent the roof from moving excessively, and by strengthening the portions of the roof diaphragms that remain continuous.

Adjacent to the main building is a central plant which will serve not only the student activity building but also other buildings on the small campus. This additional building was designed with steel roof beams, and load-bearing masonry walls that carry both the vertical and lateral loads.