Projects: Hospitality & Entertainment

Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center, Camden, N.J.

Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center, Camden, N.J.

Team

Architect: Kitchen & Associates Services Inc., Collingswood, N.J.
Glazing installer: Glazing Concepts LLC, Bensalem, Pa., (215) 633-7800
Owner: Salvation Army, Alexandria, Va.

Roof Materials

Signature features of the center include two 61- by 113-foot pre-engineered center ridge skylights over the competition pool and adjacent water park pool using translucent sandwich panels and a corrosion-resistant aluminum structural system, a 61- by 61-foot pyramid skylight in the Town Plaza, a 40- by 40-foot pyramid in the administrative area and a 30- by 30-foot pyramid in the day-care center.

Skylights manufacturer: Structures Unlimited Inc.
Translucent insulated sandwich panels manufacturer: Kalwall

Building Report

The 120,000-square-foot complex sits on 24 acres in the city’s Cramer Hill section on what was once an abandoned landfill near the Delaware River. The $100 million project began eight years ago to create a community hub badly needed by a city ranking as one of the poorest in the country. The center will create an estimated 160 full- and part-time jobs.

“We hope that this Kroc center will give (children) hope,” says Major Paul Cain of the Salvation Army. “Not only to them, but also to their families, a place where they can advance and find out what the possibilities are for their life and their future.”

Energy efficiency was important to the Salvation Army. The natural daylighting of the spaces provides beautiful light but it also significantly reduces heat loss and solar heat gain. In the pools and the gymnasium, there are many days where there is no need to run the overhead lights, reducing energy and maintenance costs for the owner. The clear-span roof areas also are dramatic.

PHOTO: STRUCTURES UNLIMITED INC.