Nic Martoo DAB810: Exemplar - Tempe Transportation Center / Architekton

Architect: Architekton
Location: Tempe, Arizona
Project Year: 2008
Project Cost: $18.9M
Client: City of Tempe
Photography: Bill Timmerman, A.F. Payne Photographic, Architekton, Otak, Skip Neeley

Architekton’s Tempe Transportation Center is a place designed for interaction and community. The architectural form reflects the special nature of gathering spaces juxtaposed against the efficient, rational organization of uses that serve city residents and the Phoenix metropolitan region. The Tempe Transportation Center is the centerpiece of Tempe’s award-winning transportation program, geared to becoming the social and transportation hub. The complexities of this triangular urban site include a busy light rail platform, Hayden Butte, ASU Sun Devil Stadium and the Tempe Police/Courts/Jail complex. The historic downtown and expansive ASU campus (69,000 students) are served by the amenities and transportation options of the Transportation Center, a strategic hub for the new 20-mile METRO light rail system, local and regional bus, Zipcar, and Arizona’s first bike station.

The high-performance building envelope and integrated systems were developed and tested with computer modeling, resulting in a 52% reduction of energy use. This is accomplished in part with a solar veil that protects the east facing steel and glazing from dawn to noon to prevent morning heat gain. The loose weave fabric screens are deployed at daybreak and retracted at noon and can be manually adjusted from the interior by remote control. The shades automatically retract during high winds, responding to roof mounted sensors. Solar panels provide hot water to the building, and conduit is in place for future installation of photovoltaic panels on the roof.

Building Performance Diagram

Quality materials were used to develop a building with a useful life of 80-100 years. The floor plans place support uses (exit stairs, mechanical, copy and storage rooms, lunch room) along the west wall, protecting the daily-occupied office area and creating a flexible space that can change over time. The 2’x2’ concrete panels in the raised floor can be removed and rearranged to accommodate changes in office layouts and the DIRTT interior glass and steel office wall system can be removed, stored and reconfigured as functions change, eliminating demolition waste and reducing time of construction.

The building includes a number of innovations, including the first desert green roof on an urban office/commercial building. The roof is a visual extension of the mountain and the plaza, visible from Hayden Butte and nearby urban buildings. The 12” soil mix and low maintenance plants stabilize the temperature of the structure in the severe summer heat, buffer noise from overhead air traffic, preserve the roof membrane and filter rain water.