Entuitive Casey Dunn NATIONAL AWARD $75 Million to $200 Million Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences, Lubbock, Texas The complex was initially conceived as a predominately reinforced concrete building, with structural steel framing lim-ited to the roof over the theaters and main lobby, the monu-mental stair, and a few other select elements. But on the advice of the construction manager, the team developed an alterna-tive scheme that expanded the use of structural steel to include all the above-grade framing, including the theater balconies, the main theater stage, and the lobby was developed. In this scheme, reinforced concrete was limited to the foundations and the ground floor, as well as the two elevator cores, the exterior portion of the roof/canopy that formed the bird’s tail, and the tilt-up walls on the studio theater. The team completed an evaluation of both schemes using the criteria of cost, schedule, the size of the relevant skilled labor pool, the availability of tradespeople in the local marketplace, and the THE SPIRIT OF BUDDY HOLLY is alive and well in the form of a steel-framed performing arts center in the famed rocker’s hometown. Completed last year, the Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences in Lubbock, Texas, has fulfilled the aim of creating a hub for the arts and culture community as well as a venue capable of attracting world-class performances. In addition, the new $158 million venue plays home to Ballet Lubbock, the Lubbock Sym-phony Orchestra, and the Lubbock Independent School District Visual and Performing Arts. At a total of 218,000 sq. ft, it houses the 2,297-seat Helen DeVitt Jones Theater, the 415-seat Crickets Theater (named for Buddy Holly’s band), a 5,600-sq.-ft multipur-pose room, a 20,000-sq.-ft ballet school, a 3,300-sq.-ft restaurant, 21,400 sq. ft of back-of-house space, 36,100 sq. ft of lobby space, and a 6,000-sq.-ft covered outdoor event/performance space. 36 | MAY 2022
Modern Steel Construction May 2022: Page 36
