Cook Inlet Sealife Science Center

Cook Inlet Sealife Science Center Jordan Cash Thesis Architecture Project 09 Bruce Haglund

Table of Contents Background-

3

Site Analysis and Climate Data- 9 Case Studies-

17

Design Process-

23

Final Design-

31

Further Investigation-

49

Works Cited-

53

Background

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Premise

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Alaska has a vast amount of coastline, more than the entire continental US combined. The resources of commercial fishing in this state play an important role in the annual revenue for the state. In the 2008 salmon season, over $400,000,000 was generated in income for the state.

Problem: The presence of this industry to local Alaskans, in my experience, is extremely lacking; other than the sight of a fishing vessel or two heading into port, there is not much to indicate its importance to the state.

Solution: The Cook Inlet Sealife Science Center seeks to solve this problem. This facility will provide a place where locals and visitors can be exposed to the importance of the industry in the state.

Labs and research areas are also included to monitor the salmon run and to help ensure the sustainable management of this resource so that it continues to thrive in the future.

Location

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Anchorage, AK would be the best place for this project. This city has the largest population of any city in Alaska at about 280,000 people, nearly half of the 600,000 that live in the state of Alaska. It serves as Alaska’s commercial hub with numerous large retail centers throughout its limits, and it is also the state’s transportation hub with trains, busses, commercial airlines converging in the city. In addition, the city is a tourism destination for the state, with numerous agencies using Anchorage as their starting point for guided tours of state parks and other attractions.

An overall map of Alaska, showing the location of Anchorage as the red star.

This map shows the site within the context of Anchorage.

This is explained in more detail later in the book.

Image modified from Google Earth.

What would this provide?

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This project would provide a place for university- based marine biologists and others devoted to the research and development of the fishing industry in Alaska to conduct their research adequately, helping the industry to continue to thrive. With the presence of an aquarium to the facility, the potential exists for education of the importance of the industry in the state.

This would help to provide more income for the state, additional local jobs, and a more cohesive approach to sustaining the fishing industry.

http://www.vet.cornell. edu/Public/FishDisease/AquaticProg/

http://earthhopenetwork.net/forum/showthread.php?tid=1998 http://www-bml.ucdavis.edu/facresearch/salmonbreeding.html

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Design Scope

A facility that would provide the means necessary for successful research and development of the fishing industry in Alaska. Offices, conference rooms, and research labs would be provided to ensure the sustainable development and management of the industry in the state. Locals and visitors would be educated on the importance of the fishing industry in the state, and could see actual research being conducted at the facility. This building would also provide a meeting place for the Salmon in the City initiative, which encourages local involvement to clean the banks of nearby streams.

Site Analysis and Climate Data

9

Site Analysis

This image shows the site within the context of Anchorage. Downtown Anchorage is located directly South of the selected site, with the Port of Anchorage and Ship Creek directly North. Cook Inlet is the body of water to the West, with Elmendorf Air Force Base to the Northeast. The site is currently a storage area for the Alaska Railroad.

Image modified from Google Earth.

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Being close to downtown Anchorage means that there are additional amenities nearby that could serve to attract people to the area.

Denali Park Resorts, the AK Railroad Museum, the Saturday Market, 5th Ave. Mall, and the Performance Arts Center are all within 7 blocks of the site, and are major draws to the area.

Its location near ship creek is an important consideration; king salmon run annually up this creek, which attracts a large amount of tourism and local interaction to the area. The proximity to the creek also means easy access for marine biologists working at the facility to gather specimens from the creek.

Image modified from Google Earth.

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5m

25m

The brighter yellow lines represent main routes of access for the site. Most roads around the site that aren’t major highways converge at the corner of North “C” street and West Ship Creek Ave. An extension of West Ship Creek Ave. will be necessary in order to access the complex. Given the buildings around the site, I believe that some of the existing parking lots could be used for commuters to the Cook Inlet Sealife Science Center.

This map shows the topographic lines of the area around the site. The site is located in a shallow valley carved out by ship creek. This means that the sun will not penetrate lower floors in the winter, so by stacking the building up towards the creek to the North, I will be able to get sunlight into the building in the winter months. The topo lines shown are in five-meter increments.

Image modified from Google Earth.

Image modified from http://agdc.usgs.gov/data/usgs/geodata/drg/temp/ drglist_A.html

Climate Data: Wind

These charts show that 25% of the time the wind blows at about 2 meters per second, and that the highest average monthly windspeed occurs in May and June, which are warmer summer months. This indicates to me that a strategy should be implemented in my design to allow for the faster summer winds to help cool my facility.

Data above collected from “Alaska Energy Authority� Anchorage International Airport, AK; 8-3-2005

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From the charts above, it is concluded that the predominant wind direction during the summer months is South, while in the colder months the wind blows to the North and Northeast. This means that windows facing south should be operable to allow for the summer winds to help draw out the hotter air inside during the warmer months, and block the Northern winter winds from penetrating the building.

Data above collected from “Alaska Energy Authority� Anchorage International Airport, AK; 8-3-2005

Climate Data: Solar

14 This chart shows the months numbered along the bottom, with the hours of the day numbered along the right side. It shows that during the winter solstice, the sun will be out for about 5 hours, as apposed to 19 hours on the summer solstice.

The sun path diagram indicates that in the summer, the sun will rise and set in the North. This means that any glazing on the Northern side of the building will require vertical louvers to shade the interior from the harsh rising and setting sun.

Zoning

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Site

This zoning map is taken from the Municipality of Anchorage’s web site, www.muni. org. The key to the right of it shows that the current use of the lot is ‘vacant’. Upon further investigation, the zone of the site is ‘PC’ or ‘Planned Community’, which has no setbacks or maximum building height restrictions. This frees me up to design my facility essentially however I please.

Case Studies

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The Alaska Fisheries Science Center Seattle Facility The Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC) is based in the NOAA Western Regional Center’s Sand Point facility on Lake Washington. This entire complex consists of nine buildings containing 473,938 square feet. The AFSC itself is located in four of these nine buildings.

Federal-funded aquatic research began in this area when the Marine Mammal Laboratory moved from Edmonds, Washington in 1957. The AFSC did not move to this location until 1984.

The AFSC creates research programs that will provide greater insight into the management and conservation of marine wildlife and the preservation of their habitats.

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http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/facilities/seattle.htm An Aerial Photograph of the AFSC.

http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/GeneralInfo/administration.htm A photograph of the AFSC.

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The Alaska Fisheries Science Center Seattle Facility Present in its program is adequate space for offices, computer rooms, library, graphic studios, laboratories, and dark rooms. This facility also has space set aside for wet storage, net loft, warehouse storage, and wet labs.

This complex is the home base for a number of smaller facilities scattered throughout Alaska’s coast, and a major aspect of this facility is communicating and coordinating with those smaller labs.

This gives me a better idea about what to include in my own program pertaining to the research and development aspect of my facility. However, the Alaska Fisheries Science Center in Seattle doesn’t seem to have a good public interaction aspect of their program, which is something I am looking to include in my design.

The Alaska Fisheries Science Center Kodiak Laboratory Of all the facilities tied into the AFSC, the one that seems the most similar in program to the proposed Cook Inlet Sealife Science Center is the Kodiak Fisheries Research Center. This facility has a minor aquarium and touch tank for tourists and locals, along with all aspects of support needed to run a center such as this. This center is the primary location for the Shellfish Assessment Program, and has offices, conference rooms, an interpretive center, a running seawater lab, conventional labs, and research library. A prominent feature of this facility is the seawater pump, which draws its water from the ocean to be gravityfed using no additional power to the aspects of the facility that require seawater for specimens and research.

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http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/Kodiak/ facilities/aquarium.htm

http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/Kodiak/ facilities/facility.htm

http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/Kodiak/ photo/crabkelpa.htm

http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/Kodiak/ shellfish/education.htm

Monterey Bay Aquarium Monterey, CA

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http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Monterey_bay_ aquarium.jpg

http://www.inetours.com/CA-Coast/images/Monterey/MBA_ Decks_4618.jpg

After getting a better feel for what to include in my laboratory aspect of the program, I studied different examples of aquariums. The Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey, CA is one that grabs my attention. It offers a multitude of different exhibits, from large-scale multi-story fish tanks to small interactive touch tanks. It also houses a wide variety of marine animals, both large and small.

Something that especially caught my eye was its location right next to the ocean. I am dealing with the possibility of placing my facility as close to Ship Creek as possible, allowing scientists to gain easy access to the creek, while providing potential views to the creek. I could use this example as a starting point for addressing the issue of constructing so close to a body of water.

The Seattle Aquarium Seattle, WA In August of 2008, I was able to visit the Seattle Aquarium. This facility is similar to the Monterey Bay Aquarium because it is located on a pier near the ocean, and the types of exhibits featured as well as the animals they have are relatively typical of an aquarium. A feature that caught my attention was a wave simulation tank near the entrance of the aquarium. This tank recognizes the fact that some smaller marine habitats rely on the constant movement of the water, and it appeared that it was successful in supporting these habitats.

This could translate over to my design in the form of a stream simulation holding tank for salmon yet to be used in labs. This stream tank could be viewable from the public aquarium area, and could be a feature that ties the aquarium to the labs.

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flickr.com

A close-up of the wave exhibit at the Seattle Aquarium. This tank pushes water through to simulate waves and their effects on micro-environments near the edge of the ocean.

Design Process

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Preliminary Design

These drawings are among the first attempts at exploring the spatial layout of the project. I was taking into consideration the placement and orientation of the programmatic aspects in the design. A problem that was not considered in these iterations is the condition of the site and views around the site. The immediate views surrounding the building site are poor, and in these iterations, much of the interior spaces would face out towards these views. I need to be very selective on this issue, allowing only a few windows to reveal views to the river on the lower levels, while opening up walls on upper levels to expose pleasant views of Cook Inlet to the West and the mountains in the distance to the East.

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To address the issue of poor views in the immediate context of the site, I split the program apart to create a central space that would link the public (aquarium) and the private (laboratory) areas together. The central space formed by the separation of program would be an outdoor courtyard, or an indoor atrium roofed in glass. This way, instead of looking out into the immediate context, the facility will create its own views in this central area.

This means less impact on the site in terms of developing new views directly outside, which will allow for the site to remain usable as storage by the AK Railroad.

Preliminary Design

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Study models are an important part of the design process. They help to visualize in three- dimensions the ideas I explored in plan. These models apply the idea of separating the program to create a centralized atrium or courtyard. Upon further investigation, however, I found that a glass-topped atrium or an outside courtyard wouldn’t be appropriate for Alaska; the abundance of sunlight in the summer would cause an interior atrium to become quite hot, and the presence of snow in the winter would require more maintenance for clearance of an outside courtyard.

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I began thinking of the central unifying space more as a part of interior program such as a food court that patrons of both the aquarium and the laboratories would use. The drawings on the left side of this page show explorations of this idea using rigid, rectangular forms, while the images on the right explored the use of fluid, curvilinear forms. I tended to like the latter of the two, as it allowed for meandering circulation paths to occur within the aquarium. Problems did occur where the circulation of the aquarium meets the circulation of the laboratories; the potential existed for public users to accidentally wander into the private areas, which could frustrate the biologists. It was also hard to work efficient space for the labs into a curvilinear scheme.

Preliminary Design

These models explored the idea of using curvilinear forms for the walls and circulation paths. The model on the left emphasized the central space and circulation in and around it. The model to the right got me thinking about structure and how it would help to define the interior spaces.

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The problems with separation of public and private experienced in the curvilinear iterations were addressed in section studies. I used the gradual slope of the site towards the creek to drop the main level of the aquarium space down about seven feet lower than the main area of the laboratory. This would ensure that the public wouldn’t accidentally end up in the private areas of program. Through combining the curvilinear iterations with the rectilinear ones, a more efficient use of space for the labs resulted.

Final Design

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Site Plan

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W. Ship Creek Ave.

N. “C” street

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The site plan shows how vehicles approach the building. Driving South from N. “C” street and making a left onto W. Ship Creek Ave., the drive circles around at a bus drop-off point, where busses can then pull around to the South and park at one of eight provided parking stalls.

People would exit the building and walk South to the bus parking area where they could get back onto the bus they came in and drive East and onto N. “C” Street.

The Green area in the site plan just in front of the building is partially covered by extensions of the structure of the building. In this area, people can sit and enjoy the sun before or after having visited the facility, and informational kiosks would be provided for additional learning purposes. This green area could also serve as a meeting point for the Salmon in the City Initiative, a program geared to encourage local interaction and clean up riverbanks across the city, especially Ship Creek.

Program Research Facility

Aquarium

Entry- Break Room- Server/IT- Mail Room- Research Lab- Offices (3)- Conference Rooms (3)- Salmon Lab- Wet Lab- Wet Storage- Rest rooms- TOTAL-

2300 sf 3000 sf 200 sf 200 sf 480 sf 860 sf 900 sf 4560 sf 1180 sf 850 sf 400 sf 14930 sf

Aquarium Area- 21,155 sf

Salmon Shark Tank- 42,100 gal

Local Habitat Tank- 97,180 gal

Puffin Tank- 80,900 gal

Crab Tanks- 6280 gal

Freshwater tanks- 13,680 gal

Touch tanks- 1761 gal Rest rooms- 2245 sf Gift Shop- 5430sf TOTAL-

GRAND TOTAL-

43,760 sf

28830 sf

Floor Plans

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Section A Wet Lab

Section B

Section A Salmon Lab

Section B

Lower Floor This floor houses the main floor of the aquarium, with public rest rooms, freshwater tanks, habitat tanks, and crab tanks.

The wet lab is on this level, accessible only from the salmon lab on the level above. Views into the wet lab are offered, with the stream simulation tank jutting into the aquarium. The main route of access to this lower level of the facility is a long ramp sloping down from the lobby area.

Entry Level This level is the main area for the laboratory and research aspect of the program. It houses offices, conference rooms, a research lab, server/I. T. room, mail room, rest rooms, break room, and the salmon research laboratory. The salmon lab is connected via stairway to the wet lab mentioned in the lower level plan. The entry lobby presents public users with an immediate choice: either walk down a ramp to the lower level of the aquarium, or walk up another ramp to the upper level of the aquarium.

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Gift Shop

Upper Level This floor gives access to viewing the large multi-story tanks that vertically span the two floors of the aquarium. It houses additional public rest rooms, access to an exterior deck to the North for viewing of Ship Creek, a green roof on the Southern side, and the gift shop to the West.

Section/Perspectives

Section A

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Section B

Structure

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I used heavy timber construction as the main structure to highlight the interior space and to offset the materiality on the exterior. I used corrugated steel as cladding for the exterior in response to the current use and condition of the site, which is a storage area for the AK Railroad. I wanted the exterior of the building to have an industrial-modern feel, which would then be offset by the warmer colors of the structure on the interior.

Wall Detail

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This peel-away detail describes the construction of a typical exterior wall in the facility. Each wall would be 1’ thick, and would be a typical drywall-finished 2x4 stud construction on the inside.

Layered between the studs would be batt insulation, and attached to the studs themselves on the exterior is 4” thick polyiso rigid insulation board. Sealing the insulation from the elements on the exterior is treated 3/4” plywood, with the final exterior layer being corrugated steel sheeting. The reason for the layer of plywood beneath the steel siding is so that as an exterior wall approaches a window or door, the steel cladding could peel away in sections, revealing the wood beneath and exposing some of the structure present in the interior. North, East and West-facing windows are shaded by exposed vertical 2x16’s, while South windows are shaded via horizontal louvers of the same type.

Glue-Lam Beam

Exposed 2x16 for shading 2x4 Wall construction

Interior Gypsum board Batt Insulation

4” Polyiso Board

Exterior Plywood

Corrugated Cladding

Passive Strategies

Catchment

The slope of the roof allows for rainwater to be directed to the lowest part of the main roof. In the interior of the aquarium below this point is a cistern designed to hold 18,000 gallons of water. I purposely oversized this cistern to store more water than needed so that the water harvested can also be used for the laboratories in addition to flushing toilets.

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Cooling

The roof allows for some substantial South-facing shaded clerestories to occur, which lets in the winter light to help heat the space in the colder months, while shading out direct sunlight in the summer months. In addition to light and views, these clerestories should be operable so the predominant southbound wind in the summer can help to suck out the hotter air which would rise high into the space.

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Perspective of entry showing ramp going up on the left side of the image, as well as the ramp going down on the right side.

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Perspective from gift shop entry showing views back into the central aquarium space.

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Perspective from the lower floor of the aquarium looking back up the main ramp.

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Exterior perspective looking to the facility from the bus drop-off point.

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Interior perspective from upper level of the aquarium, showing the interior water cistern in the foreground on the left.

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Perspective highlighting the staircase that encircles the main tank.

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Lower level perspective just North of the main downward ramp.

Further Investigation

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Critique

During the final critique of this project, certain aspects of the design were brought to light that could have been explored further during the design phase. A major critique was that the site planning facilitated mainly for vehicular access to the facility. Aside from this, no apparent consideration was made to cater to pedestrians accessing the project.

Another critique was that during the design phase, the decision to combine the curvilinear form with the rectilinear form resulted in a space that was fairly uniform in its atmosphere. It was suggested to allow the aquarium to remain more curvilinear. In doing so, it would allow for more constricted views to the other tanks in the design, rather than a single open space where all exhibits can be visible. In the existing aquariums studied, the mood of the area surrounding the exhibits changes based upon the wildlife in that exhibit; deepsea creatures are located in dark, quiet rooms, whereas exhibits that feature wild life that are accustomed to life closer to the surface are exposed to natural light and can be outdoors themselves.

Something else that I took away from the final critique is the fact that I produced a single building rather than a series of buildings in a campus-like setting. If I had approached the project from this angle from the get-go, I believe that the final product would be something much more integrated into the site that would work to complete the surroundings instead of just introducing another building into the area. I believe that in using this strategy I would’ve uncovered a solution to the question of the facility’s use in the winter seasons, such as a cold- weather survival camp.

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If I were to revisit this design, the most apparent link to strengthen would be the existing pathway from the Saturday Market that ends just South of the site. This would most likely become the primary route for pedestrians to take from downtown to the Cook Inlet Sealife Science Center, and it would be from this vantage point that they would first catch a glimpse of the complex, as the Saturday Market is at the top of the slight downgrade surrounding the site.

The Tony Knowles Coastal Trail could have also be incorporated into the site. This trail is extremely popular all year round and runs 11 miles from downtown Anchorage Southwest to Kincaid Park. As it exists, there is no defined terminus for the downtown end of the trail and the site could serve as this ending point, adding to the usage of the site.

Conclusion

The Cook Inlet Sealife Science Center, while successful in some aspects, was lacking in others. It seems that during the design phase, not enough consideration was given to the site’s immediate context to make the facility a more integral part in its surroundings. The program of the building took precedence over its form, which ended up producing a space too uniform in its mood. Equal consideration of both the form and program should have been taken to avoid this outcome.

The facility was successful in providing a destination for learning and for research. With local habitat tanks and local Alaskan wildlife, the aquarium would educate its patrons to the importance of the fishing industry in the state and the importance of it’s sustainable future development. Giving the wet laboratory access to Ship Creek means it would be easier to obtain specimens for research, giving marine biologists a near constant supply of salmon for testing and research.

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Works Cited

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“About Salmon in the City.” Anchorage, Alaska: The Official Municipality of Anchorage, Alaska website. Municipality of Anchorage. <http://

www.muni.org/salmoninthecity/about.cfm>.

Alaska Fisheries Science Center. NOAA. <http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/facilities/seattle.htm>.

“Anchorage: Economy - Major Industries and Commercial Activity.” Stats about all US cities - real estate, relocation info, house prices, home

value estimator, recent sales, cost of living, crime, race, income, photos, education, maps, weather, houses, schools, neighbor

hoods, and more. <http://www.city-data.com/us-cities/The-West/Anchorage-Economy.html>.

BML :: Salmon Research. UC Davis. <http://www-bml.ucdavis.edu/facresearch/salmonbreeding.html>.

NOAA Solar Position Calculator. NOAA. <http://www.srrb.noaa.gov/highlights/sunrise/azel.html>.

“Researchers identify virus causing salmon cancerous tumors.” College of Veterinary Medicine: Cornell University. <http://www.vet.cornell.

edu/Public/FishDisease/AquaticProg/highlights/salmon_virus.html>.

2008 Alaska Commercial Salmon Harvests - ADF&G Commercial Fisheries. Alaska Department of Fish & Game. <http://www.cf.adfg.state.

ak.us/geninfo/finfish/salmon/catchval/blusheet/08exvesl.php>.