Showcase
Most new convention centers look so similar to one another they don’t uniquely represent their cities or surroundings. The 1.5 million square foot Phoenix Convention Center phased replacement challenges conventional approached to beauty, function, spirit of place and urban integration. With Phase I of the expansion complete, the building’s exterior unfolds in unity with its surroundings, engaging the community, embracing the pedestrian and celebrating Arizona’s desert environment.
The main exhibit hall is strategically situated 55 feet below grade with the second exhibit hall elevated 55 feet above grade, reducing the overall height of the building. This reopens the streetscape to pedestrians for retail access, building entries and grand interior lobbies. Loading docks are hidden below ground and screened on the upper level away from views at street level. This configuration reopens the streetscape to pedestrians for retail access, building entries on all four sides and grand interior lobbies. To ensure that the exhibit hall will not feel as though it is underground, designers employed creative techniques for drawing in natural light. Massive crystalline skylights, for example, allow shafts of light to flow down through the plane of the street to illuminate the lower prefunction areas. The building’s form and materials are derived from an intensive study of natural forms and color palates of the desert. The dramatic steel lattice roof structures reach out to screen pedestrians from the intensity of the sun during the summer months.
To further accentuate the building’s unique environmental opportunities, the design incorporates a series of outdoor meeting rooms that will invite guests to enjoy the local climate nine months of the year. Accessed directly from the convention center’s interior lobbies and prefunction halls, these exterior rooms incorporate generous shade, indigenous landscaping, local building materials and comfortable furniture.
The Phoenix Convention Center project represents what convention center design can and should be – functional, efficient, beautiful and, most importantly, a reflection of the true spirit of its place.