To meet the expanding safety and emergency response needs of a rapidly growing urban area, our client commissioned the team of Clark Nexsen and AECOM to program and design the new Central Communications Center. The facility is in continuous operation 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to provide coordination of public safety and emergency response teams. Its major functions consist of a 911 emergency call center, an emergency operations center, the area’s main data center, and a traffic control center. Due to the critical mission of the building operations, back-up building systems and redundancy provide continuous operation in the event of natural disaster or man-made event.
Issues of safety, durability, and occupant comfort were major factors driving the design strategies for the facility. Employee entries, work areas, and indoor/outdoor break areas are secured and separated from public access points. The major work areas face north with a large glass curtainwall system providing filtered natural light and expansive views to occupants working long and stressful hours. In addition to being constructed of durable materials, the exterior wall systems are blast and ballistic resistant to meet safety and resiliency standards. Building setbacks and vehicular access provide additional safety buffers from potential threats.