St. Louis Commerce Magazine

The unique design element of the 21,000-square-foot headquarters for Consultant Lubricant, Inc., in the Missouri Research Park, features office walls that serpentine around the manufacturing portion of the facility and a curved glass block wall.

Above: The unique design element of the 21,000-square-foot headquarters for Consultant Lubricant, Inc., in the Missouri Research Park, features office walls that serpentine around the manufacturing portion of the facility and a curved glass block wall.

Missouri Research Park Reaches One-Million-Square-Foot Milestone with Westar Project

The Missouri Research Park in St. Charles County has reached a milestone of one million square feet under roof with a new 40,000-square-foot research and development, engineering and production center for Westar Corporation. Holleran-Duitsman Architects and Paric Corp built the $3.9 million facility with tilt-up construction, a significant glass line and enhanced façade and entry.

“We selected the Missouri Research Park because of its generously spaced, campus-like atmosphere, which will appeal to our high-tech, high-value employees,” says Rob Topping, vice president of Westar, a leading international supplier of advanced test systems and interface products for the flat-panel display industry. The rapidly growing high-tech company projects revenues of $25 million by 2000.

“The Missouri Research Park has a better look and feel than anything else we’ve seen. The amenities such as walking trails and lakes, the physical location and the layout are superior,” Topping adds.

Also, Keystone Construction Co. built a new corporate headquarters and research and development facility for Consultant Lubricants, Inc.(CLI) on a 1.9-acre site in the Missouri Research Park. Founded in 1976, CLI formulates and compounds chemicals used in the machining, stamping, grinding and extrusion of metal and metal alloys.

McCarthy Building Largest Public Works Project in Missouri

Under a lease-purchase arrangement, McCarthy recently began construction of the new $110 million prison in Bonne Terre known as the Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center. This is the largest public works project currently under construction in the state and is scheduled for a Spring 2001 completion.

McCarthy, in partnership with A.G. Edwards & Sons, Inc. of St. Louis, has been involved with three of Missouri’s past five lease-purchase projects. “Similar to a private-sector mortgage, a lease-purchase arrangement enables the state to limit the size of its initial capital expenditure on a single project, freeing up revenue for other uses,” says Jim Weber, project manager for the Missouri Office of Administration, Division of Design and Construction.

“This project requires construction of a large, free-standing, self-supporting correctional facility in a 20-plus month time frame,” says McCarthy Senior Vice President Kevin Lasater. “To meet this accelerated schedule, our crews will construct 14 cells a day using a French tunnelforming system. This technique allows the pouring of multiple cells at one time, including floors, ceilings and walls.”

Approximately 17,000 cubic yards of concrete will be poured for the cells. With peak manpower on the project estimated at more than 680 tradespeople, 43 subcontractors, 24 vendors and 100 support staff, coordinating all activities on the site will be critical. “We implemented a schedule monitoring system to effectively track all activities. Most of the 2,400 significant activities are monitored on a daily basis,” says McCarthy Project Manager Dennis Nicholson.

Situated on a 214-acre site, the 700,000-square-foot, 18-building complex will contain 10 concrete structures to house 1,500 maximum security inmates, reception areas and an 800-bed inmate diagnostic area. Additional buildings will include administration building, visitor building, industrial training facility, central plan, gymnasium and dayroom. A two-building cook/chill complex will produce up to 34,000 meals per day to serve all prisons in eastern Missouri. Two guard towers and a water tower also will be constructed. St. Louis-based Sverdrup Facilities, Inc., in association with Hellmuth Obata + Kassabuam, and Kennedy Associates, Inc. designed the project.

McCarthy, the nation’s 22nd largest general building contractor (Engineering News-Record, May 1999) has constructed approximately 25 correctional facilities nationwide, including three prisons and one major justice facility in Missouri. The firm also is the apparent low, responsive bidder for the new $65 million St. Louis City Justice Center in downtown St. Louis.

Southwest Bank To Triple Size of Southtown Location

As part of its ongoing area redevelopment effort, Southwest Bank has begun expansion of its Southtown location on the southeast corner of Kingshighway and Chippewa. The 5,000-square-foot, two-story building will be three times larger than the bank’s current facility and include additional customer-service areas and more teller windows.

Southwest Bank will add a small plaza area between its building and the street to further enhance the appearance of the corner. The park will be named for 14th Ward Alderman Stephen Gregali in appreciation of his efforts to secure necessary approvals and backing for development of the area. The bank received no tax abatement for its building renovation.

Doug Kassabaum, of the Sutton Studio, Inc., is the architect for the bank renovation and landscaped plaza. His goal when redesigning the building was to improve the overall look of the corner while maintaining the bank’s fit with the other historic buildings along the street.

“With this renovation, Southwest Bank is demonstrating its continued commitment to the city,” Kassabaum says. “We wanted the building to communicate this sense of stability, yet show that the bank is a dynamic, growing financial institution.”

Along with its landscaped plaza setting, the bank’s exterior will feature a large wall of windows facing the corner and a drive-up canopy integrated into the building shape. Inside, a modern south-facing skylight will contrast with traditional millwork. S.M. Wilson is the general contractor for the construction, which is scheduled for completion in spring of 2000.

ARCO Builds SLBF’s New Headquarters in Jefferson County

St. Louis Business Forms, Inc. (SLBF), relocated to a new $1.3 million, 33,500-square-foot headquarters in Jefferson County.

Design/build contractor ARCO Construction Co. erected the building with tilt-up concrete panels. SLBF, formed in 1969 as a distributor of business forms, occupies 22,000 square feet of the structure, including 5,000 square feet of office space and 17,000 square feet of warehouse space. Located on a six-acre site with 40-space parking, the warehouse features 18-foot clear-height ceilings, one drive-in door and one dock door.

Trivers Associates Completes Design Plans for Missouri Forest Heritage Center

Trivers Associates completed the preliminary site and building design for a 20,683-square-foot Missouri Forest Heritage Museum and Visitors Center. Constructed of native stone and wood, the Center is located on 455 scenic acres in the Missouri Ozark region.

Project plans include a caretaker residence; a historic logging, woodcraft and sawmill demonstration area; picnic pavilions and recreation areas and an outdoor amphitheater. The Missouri Department of Conservation donated the Twin Pines Site in Shannon County near Winona, Mo.

In an effort to help preserve forest history in Missouri, the non-profit Missouri Forest Heritage Center incorporated in 1990 to educate the estimated 100,000 visitors each year about Missouri’s forest legacy and current resource.

Founded in 1975, the St. Louis-based Trivers Associates has earned a national reputation for project planning, design and project management.

T.R. Hughes Ballpark has a natural grass field with chair and bleacher seating for 2,900. Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum, Inc. designed the stadium, which has a 35-foot-high, 90-foot-wide right field wall and a manually operated scoreboard.

Above: T.R. Hughes Ballpark has a natural grass field with chair and bleacher seating for 2,900. Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum, Inc. designed the stadium, which has a 35-foot-high, 90-foot-wide right field wall and a manually operated scoreboard.

T.R. Hughes Ballpark in O’Fallon, Mo. is a sparkling new facility with a nostalgic look. Clayco Construction Co. built the façade of the $4.4 million stadium, which features aged red brick and wrought iron.

Above: T.R. Hughes Ballpark in O’Fallon, Mo. is a sparkling new facility with a nostalgic look. Clayco Construction Co. built the façade of the $4.4 million stadium, which features aged red brick and wrought iron.

Clayco Builds Old-Fashioned Minor League Stadium in O’Fallon

Clayco Construction Co. built the new $4.4 million T.R. Hughes Ballpark in O’Fallon, Mo. to look old. With a record attendance in its first year, Hughes Ballpark blends a nostalgic look with a fan-friendly atmosphere.

Located in the Ozzie Smith Sports Complex, it features nostalgic banners of baseball hall-of-famers, aged wood signs, natural grass field, old fashioned truss-type light fixtures and a manually operated scoreboard compared to Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, N.Y. The ballpark has 2,000 chair-backed seats and 900 bleachers plus lawn seating.

“Four years ago, I envisioned a small country ballpark for O’Fallon,” says Ken Wilson, one of the lead investors in the team. “Clayco Sports Division made that vision come true. They were very much on top of the project, effectively blending the interests of the city, the baseball team and the architect—Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum, Inc.”

In addition to Hughes Ballpark, Clayco Sports Division also completed two premium seating areas and expanded the broadcast booths at Busch Stadium for the St. Louis Cardinals; the McDonnell Athletic Center and Field House, an 80,000-square-foot athletic complex at Mary Institute and St. Louis Country Day School (MICDS) in Ladue; and the St. Louis Rams’ executive office and practice facility in Earth City.

Holland-Hinrichs Construction Inc. has begun construction on its third West Pointe Bank and Trust Company building. The new 15,000-square-foot facility is scheduled for completion in May.

Above: Holland-Hinrichs Construction Inc. has begun construction on its third West Pointe Bank and Trust Company building. The new 15,000-square-foot facility is scheduled for completion in May.

Holland-Hinrichs To Build West Pointe Bank Facility

Holland-Hinrichs Construction Inc., a full-service design-build contractor with offices in St. Louis and Belleville, Ill., has begun construction on its third West Pointe Bank and Trust Company facility.

The new 15,000-square-foot building in Belleville includes a 2,000-square-foot drive-up canopy, walk-up teller stations, office/administrative space, conference rooms, lobby and a full basement for storage and vaults. The exterior of the two-story building is split-face block/brick/ EIFS with a shingled roof and a standing seam metal barrel roof accent. The floors of the vestibule and the second floor conference room entry feature ceramic tile with wood doors, frames and trim throughout the facility.

The Mullenix Companies will construct 22 buildings at Pheasant Point, a $29 million development of super-luxury apartments in O’Fallon, Mo.

Above: The Mullenix Companies will construct 22 buildings at Pheasant Point, a $29 million development of super-luxury apartments in O’Fallon, Mo.

Mullenix Begins Construction on Another Exclusive O’Fallon Apartment Community

The Mullenix Companies is building a second high-end apartment project in O’Fallon, Mo. The super-luxury, 376-unit apartment community of Pheasant Point is two miles away from Mallards Landing, a $17 million, 253-unit complex that Mullenix is scheduled to complete next spring. Located on a 40-acre site off U.S. Highway 40 near the intersection of Highway K and Highway N, the $29 million gated complex of Pheasant Point is scheduled to open for occupancy late next summer.

“The coming relocations of MasterCard International and GLA International to their new headquarters at WingHaven and the move of MCI WorldCom to its new regional headquarters in Weldon Spring bode well for the long-term prospects of both properties,” says Michael Mullenix, president of the Mullenix Companies, which has built and manages more than 5,000 multi-family homes locally, including St. Charles County’s four most upscale apartment communities. “We are confident that Pheasant Point will become a successful addition to our apartment portfolio.”

Pheasant Point provides several day-to-day services, such as pet and plant care, dry cleaning pick-up, a car wash, parcel post pick-up and delivery via a mail kiosk system, event planning, and valet trash collection. Recreation facilities will include an elaborate clubhouse with swimming pool, lighted tennis and a fully equipped fitness center with Jacuzzi. The clubhouse also will have a business center with conference room and a large gathering area with full kitchen and lounge.