Arkansas Children’s Northwest
LOCATION
Springdale, AR
SCOPE OF WORK
Site Assessment, Survey, Geotechnical Investigation, Construction Materials Testing/Special Inspections, Site Design, Utility Engineering, Utility Distribution, Permitting
CLIENT
Jason Landrum, AIA
Polk Stanley Wilcox Architects
2222 Cottondale Lane #100
Little Rock, AR 72202
(501) 378.0878
MCE performed civil engineering and related consulting services for programming, planning, design, and construction contract administration of a new 235,670 square foot children’s hospital on a 37 acre site in Springdale. The project’s scope included site planning to accommodate a helicopter landing pad and future hanger; a 16,230 square foot central plant/utility building to support the new construction and planned expansion; and associated utility extensions/upgrades necessary to support the new facility.
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The central energy plant was sited 400 feet away from the hospital building CEP. A dense utility corridor comprised of heating, cooling and make-up water supply lines, a fire suppressions system, natural gas, oxygen, and electrical lines were designed to connect the CEP to the main hospital. Numerous utility crossings and potential underground conflicts were vetted and designed to ensure adequate clearances and simplified construction methods. Security fencing and gates were designed and constructed to keep the CEP’s exterior service yard (comprised of chillers, generators, transformers and storage tanks) protected from the general public. The MCE design team worked closely with the architectural team and the city’s fire protection officials to guarantee that the facility was secure, yet accessible.
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Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts
LOCATION
Little Rock, AR
SCOPE OF WORK
Tree Protection/Erosion Control, Site/Utility Demolition, City Planning Approvals, Coordination/Design For Site Utility Improvements, Detailed Grading/Drainage, Stormwater Detention Design, Bioswale Design, Detailing of Hardscape
CLIENT
Angela Peckham, AIA LEED
AP BD+C, Design Managment Director, Studio Gang Architects apeckham@studiogang.com
The Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts began construction in 2019 with a $142 million budget, and was completed in early 2023. MCE worked with Studio Gang Architects, SCAPE Landscape Architects, and Polk Stanley Wilcox Architects, as the local civil engineer and site design consultant. MCE worked with SCAPE to mitigate development impacts to the many large, established urban trees around the site. The goal of the design team was to blur the line between the art museum and historic MacArthur Park. By prioritizing protection of the urban tree canopy and extending the site design southeast into the park and north into historic Crescent Drive, the new AMFA opens itself up as a free amenity to the community.
One of MCE’s roles on the team was to utilize our decades-old relationship with the City of Little Rock’s Planning, Public Works, and Parks Departments as well as utility agencies to guide design concepts from the owner and design team through the regulatory and procedural process. We worked directly with the design team to perfect the site design, and provide the necessary drainage/utility improvements. MCE’s role as the local civil firm was also to be the “boots-on-theground” for construction issues, as the site is 10 minutes from our Little Rock office.
The new interior of the building includes: fine art galleries, newly renovated children’s theater, a new gallery area, retail space, education spaces, administration spaces, restaraunt, an event hall for social events and gatherings, or 40,000 square feet of new construction.
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Gentry Sports Complex
LOCATION
Gentry, AR
SCOPE OF WORK
Landscape Architecture, Civil Engineering, Site Due Diligence, Survey, Geotechncial Investigation, Services During Construction
CLIENT
Kevin Johnston, Mayor
101 West Main Street
Gentry, AR 72734
(479) 736.2555 kevin.johnston@cityofgentry.com
As a response to its quickly expanding population, the City of Gentry commissioned MCE to assist in the development of a new sport complex. MCE worked closely with the City to identify possible properties for the future park. Services completed included: site due diligence including earthwork quantities, utility analysis, and site layout feasibility. These recommendations were presented to the City Council which lead to the purchase of the property. MCE prepared a master plan and program which outlined input received from community outreach. Construction documents were prepared by MCE and bid through the City’s construction manger consultant.
The 27 acre park features six multipurpose baseball/softball and 16 soccer fields ranging in sizes for all ages. A 240 space parking lot includes landscaping and a drop off. A restroom building and concession area are centrally located in the park’s interior. Multiple pavilions, benches, drinking fountains, trails, and trees provide spectators with amenities beyond the fields. An existing building on-site will function as the park’s maintenance facility. The park’s layout carefully preserves the wooded portions of the property which feature a nature trail. Providing yet another amenity for the community.
Nearly $8 million of the City’s $15 million park bond was allocated for the property purchase and implementation of Phase I of this multiphase project. This phase of the project officially opened on June 2, 2022.
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Southwest High School
LOCATION
Little Rock, AR
SCOPE OF WORK
Large Scale Development Services, Civil/Site Design, Landscape Architecture, Grading, Drainage, Utilities, City Planning, Permitting, Coordinating
CLIENT
David Porter, AIA
Polk Stanley Wilcox Architects
2222 Cottondale Ln., Suite 100
Little Rock, AR 72202
(501) 378.0878
MCE was chosen as part of the team to provide site design and landscape architecture services for the Little Rock School District on the district’s new high school, the first to be built in over 50 years. The new school sits on 55 acres in Southwest Little Rock and is the new home to students from two area high schools. The campus includes a 310,000 square foot academic building, a 1,200-seat auditorium with band space and a black-box theater, and a 2,250-seat basketball arena. The sports facilities are planned to include an arena-size gymnasium, a combined football and soccer field with indoor and outdoor practice fields and field house, track and field, baseball and softball fields, and tennis. Completed for the beginning of the 2020 school year, the estimated cost of the new school was $101 million.
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Mile 16 - Razorback Greenway Realignment & Public Space
LOCATION
Springdale, AR
SCOPE OF WORK
Landscape Architecture Design, Public Space Design, Conceptual Design, Survey, Civil/Site Engineering
CLIENT
Patsy Christie, Planning
Director, City of Springdale
201 Spring Street
Springdale, AR 72764
(479) 750.8550
pchristie@springdalear.gov
MCE assisted the City of Springdale with landscape architecture and engineering services for the realignment of the Razorback Greenway Trail in Downtown Springdale. The goal of this project was to increase safety, provide a regionally relevant public space, and add a vibrant gateway into the downtown core.
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Additionally, improvements proposed within the Emma Avenue right-of-way included realignment of the trail crossing, the creation of additional public spaces, and traffic calming improvements within the Emma Avenue right-of-way.
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The project improved trail user experience and safety, while strengthening the Springdale community identity by creating vibrant public spaces.
Design services associated with the design of the Razorback Greenway realignment and public space project, located near the Emma Avenue and Spring Street intersection in downtown Springdale, included schematic design and construction documents for the landscape architecture and civil engineering aspects of the project.
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Saracen Casino & Resort Phase I
LOCATION
Pine Bluff, AR
SCOPE OF WORK
Geotechnical Investigation, ESAs, Survey, Roadway Design, Site Design, Water/Wastewater Utility Design, Permitting, Construction Materials Testing, Special Inspections
CLIENT
Chris Samples
Quapaw Services Authority
304 S. Main Street
Quapaw, OK 74363
(918) 533.3347
MCE has and is currently providing civil design services for the $350 million Saracen Casino and Resort which will be located on a 345- acre site in Pine Bluff. The facility will span 570,000 square feet on 110 acres of developed land and will consist of 80,000 square feet of gaming floor. The hotel portion is made up of 300 rooms, conference center, spa, restaurants and lounges, entertainment venue, as well as a cultural center. Along with the entertainment areas of the resort, the grounds will also feature amenities such as a health clinic, child learning center and day care, fire and safety services, and an additional 15,000 square foot annex building which includes 300 slot machines, and a 5,000 square foot renovated convenient store with a diesel and vehicular gas station. The specific services provided by MCE include:
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Geotechnical Investigation
MCE conducted a Geotechnical investigation of subsurface soil conditions across the project site. Recommendations were provided for items including structure foundations, subgrade stabilization and preparation, site grading, pavement design, site drainage/dewatering, and lateral earth pressures. The structure foundation recommendations included shallow foundations for site features including a water tank and Central Utility Plant; rammed-aggregate pier foundations for the casino and event center portions of the structure, and auger-cast grout pile foundations for the 13-story hotel tower. Site subgrade recommendations also included elements such as lime, fly ash, and cement stabilization of on-site soils.
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Environmental Site Assessments
MCE conducted multiple Environmental Site Assessments under contract with Downstream Development Authority as part of the due diligence practice associated with a real estate transaction. Such environmental services include but are not limited to records review, site reconnaissance, interviews with persons knowledgeable of the sites, title document review, environmental exploration, environmental sampling, and sample analysis.
Construction Materials Testing and Special Inspection Services
MCE is performing construction materials testing and special inspection services. These services include: cast-in-place concrete testing, density testing of soil and base fill material, reinforcing bar inspections, grout and mortar testing, earthwork proof-roll observation and subgrade recommendations, asphalt testing, observation of rammed-aggregate piers and auger-cast grout piles, structural steel and welding inspections, and post-tension concrete slab inspections.
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Survey
MCE provided boundary and topographic surveys for 360 acres that will be used for the Casino and Resort. Easement and right-of-way documents for utilities and roadways have been prepared and used to assist with the coordination and permitting as required for ADEQ, USACE, ADH, FEMA, ARDOT, the City of Pine Bluff, Jefferson County, and the FAA.
Off-Site Roadway Design
MCE’s transportation department is responsible for the off-site roadway and intersection improvements for the Casino and Resort. The scope of work includes the design of a two-lane roundabout and roadway improvements on Hwy. 63, roadway improvements on Hwy. 65B, traffic signal and roadway improvements on Hwy. 63, and improvements to Hwy. 65/65B frontage road. MCE’s transportation team is working closely with the Owner’s representatives as well as ARDOT to expedite the design. The design work includes roadway design, traffic engineering studies, pavement design recommendations, drainage design, lighting design and construction engineering & inspection.
Site Design
MCE has completed a full set of construction plans that include erosion control, site and paving layout, mass and fine grading, and drainage design. Included on the site is paving for a truck loading dock, parking lots, sidewalks and decorative concrete plazas and pathways. The site has been designed to be both pedestrian friendly and ADA compliant, allowing pedestrians and vehicular traffic to travel safely. The grading and drainage plans have incorporated the existing topography and stormwater management to improve the stormwater hydraulics and hydrology using low impact development principles. Bioswales, retention ponds, filter strips, infiltration basins, and dry swales were all utilized to help mimic the site’s existing characteristics and allow off-site runoff to be conveyed through the site. Existing wetlands and streams were protected and improved so that the entire drainage system would function better.
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Although not designed at this time during Phase I of construction, Phase II will include an outdoor pool and recreation area, as well as an outdoor amphitheatre that would seat approximately 4,000 visitors.
Utility Design
MCE has performed a hydraulic analysis of Liberty Utilities existing water system to aid in the design of on-site water which will include water line and water tank design, and gravity sewer line. MCE will also provide design improvements to Pine Bluff Wastewater’s Highway 65 pump station to include new pumps and a new screening system necessary to accommodate the new casino and resort.
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Saracen Casino & Resort Annex
LOCATION
Pine Bluff, AR
SCOPE OF WORK
Site Design, Permitting Geotechnical Investigation
CLIENT
Brock Eubanks
Quapaw Services Authority
304 S. Main Street
Quapaw, OK 74363
(918) 965.9071
In addition to the Saracen Casino and Resort project, MCE provided preliminary design, site investigation, and site design to the Casino Annex which sits on approximately 14.1 acres and consists of a renovated former truck stop and an addition of which houses 300 gaming machines. The footprint of the facility encompasses 14,000 square feet. Also located in the annex area is a 10,000 square foot pre-engineered metal structure which functions as a fire station and includes two truck bays, office space, living quarters, and a recreation room. The annex and truck stop are surrounded by paved parking and driveway areas. A recreational vehicle (RV) parking area is located on the north end of the project area directly east of the new fire station. The RV parking area encompass approximately 17,200 square feet and has enough spaces to accommodate 12 recreational vehicles. A tractor trailer parking area is located Northwest of the truck stop and encompass 35,700 square feet and has enough spaces to accommodate forty tractor trailers. A large parking area with over 300 parking spaces is located east and northeast of the gaming annex.
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The Momentary
LOCATION
Bentonville, AR
SCOPE OF WORK
Site Design, Permitting Geotechnical Investigation
CLIENT
Larry Kerns
Wheeler Kerns Architects
343 S. Dearborn St., Suite 200
Chicago, IL 60604
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art recently opened an innovative new arts center in downtown Bentonville. The Momentary is an adaptive reuse project that transformed a decommissioned Kraft Foods plant south of Crystal Bridges into a multidisciplinary space for visual and performing arts and artists-in-residency.
Wheeler Kearns Architects, based in Chicago, provided oversight for the adaptive reuse project. Planning was an important part of this project and included identification of programmatic needs and adapted spaces to include galleries, studio space for artists, a small black box theater, an amphitheater, studio kitchen, café, bar and flexible indoor/outdoor community gathering areas. By keeping many of the industrial elements and original finishes of the building, the public spaces feel distinct, yet comfortable and modern.
MCE worked as part of a larger team to re-establish a strong vegetated footprint for the industrial site that was sterile and lacking a unique identity. The ecologically barren site of impervious pavement was improved through the design of gravel pave to function as a pervious load-bearing surface that promotes infiltration and stormwater quality.
The on-site parking design drains to an extensive network of bioswales designed to further enhance the quality of stormwater runoff. Through a series of outdoor gathering spaces, including north and south courtyard entries, performance spaces, food truck court, and festival field with the capacity to hold 4,000 spectators, all interconnected.
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TheatreSquared
LOCATION
Fayetteville, AR
SCOPE OF WORK
Site Design, Development, Geotechnical Investigation, Phase I ESA, Construction Materials Testing/Special Inspections
CLIENT
Zachary Griffin, RA/Associate
Marvel Architects
145 Hudson Street
New York, NY 10013
(212) 616.0420
MCE assisted T2 with its vision of placing a state-of-the-art theater in Downtown Fayetteville. The new theater is situated at the southeast corner of West Ave. and Spring Street. The 50,000 square foot, multistory facility was designed to include two performance stages, a rehearsal space, a scene shop, a costume shop, a props room, dressing rooms, a green room, and an upper-level administrative office area.
The heavily programmed site totals just 37,203 square feet and is located within a dense urban area, bounded by city streets and multifamily homes. With more than 50% of the available site occupied by proposed buildings, the site grading, drainage and utility design became a challenge. Creative civil engineering/landscape architecture design solutions were utilized to optimize the lack of available space needed for vehicular and pedestrian access, utilities, stormwater, and landscape enhancements. Areas of the site are designed to be multifunctional both above and below grade. Through close coordination with the architectural team and the contractor, site conflicts were minimized throughout construction.
The project team included Marvel Architects, and CharcoalBlue, a London-based theatre consultant. The artistic spaces are designed to project from the façade of the building, making the studio area, rehearsal space and main stage visible from the street. The project was designed as a sustainable structure, utilizing repurposed building materials, LED lighting, furniture milled from on-site trees, and an artist’s patio, which is designed from reclaimed brick from a 150-year old structure that once stood near the new facility.
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