Development of Springfield?s Jordan Valley Park progresses

When the first phase of Jordan Valley Park is completed, visitors to downtown Springfield will be able to hike a greenway trail, stroll along a creek, watch outdoor performances, or take a turn around the ice rink.

Jordan Valley Ice Park

The first piece of the puzzle to be completed was the ice rink, which opened Sept. 22, said Benjamin Alexander, principal planner for the city of Springfield and project manager for Jordan Valley Park.

Bill Hobbs, assistant director of parks, was the project manager for the ice rink. The primary design team was headed by Ankeny Kell Architects of St. Paul, Minn., Hobbs said, while the local firm Gaskin Hill Norcross Inc. worked with the firm and handled day-to-day details. Walton Construction was the contractor for the project.

"Ice rinks are very challenging projects, with all the elements involved," Al-exander said.

As Hobbs explained, "It's like an inverted refrigerator. You have to insulate the ground several feet deep before you put the ice rink in." This is accomplished using recycled water that runs off the heated ice, he added.

"Another unique feature is making sure you have sufficient air exchange systems, because of the hot-and-cold na-ture of the building," Hobbs said. "You have to reduce the condensation."

Hobbs said the two-story building takes advantage of the existing slope of the terrain. "On both the east and west side, you enter at ground level," he said. "On the east side you enter and you're on the top level, while on the west side you'd be on the lower level."

The facility contains two National Hockey League-size rinks, with one side seating around 850 and the other about 500, he said. According to Alexander, "the facility is outstanding. When compared with other ice rinks in the country, this is right up there with the best of them."

JVP amenities

Next to the ice arena, a park is taking shape with trails and walkways, an am-phitheater and an intricate water feature. Flintco Inc. is the general contractor for this project. "Right now we're on schedule for a May opening of Phase 1 of the park," Alexander said, including the first phase of open space on 12 acres just east of the ice rink.

A symbolic Ozarks stream incorporating granite and limestone will begin in a flat pool near the ice rink and slope down the hill through the park. "It's a complex feature," said Alexander. "The biggest challenge with the stream has been trying to figure out all the parts and get it assembled properly. So far it's coming together very well," he added. "I think the community is going to be excited with what they see."

Alexander said the park will include both formal and informal settings. "There's been a lot of public participation in the development of the park," he said. "We've tried to address the different ideas and visions for the park."

By incorporating a variety of elements, Alexander hopes this first phase will provide inspiration for future phases. "This is an example that will set the stage for future phases to come."

Hartman Construction is the contractor for the first phase of the Jordan Creek Greenway, a trail that will connect Phase 1 with the Boonville streetscape and pass alongside Founders Park. The trail will later be extended past Boonville Avenue to Main Avenue, Alexander said. "In two years we should have almost a mile of greenway trail in downtown Spring-field." The Jordan Creek Greenway will eventually connect with other greenways in the city, he added.

The next phase

The city is also working on demolition for Phase 1B, surface parking for the baseball stadium. Rensch Construction is the contractor for this demolition project, which will last through April, said Al-exander. The parking lot, which will be city-owned and leased out for events, will be located between St. Louis and East Trafficway streets, from the federal courthouse to Hampton Avenue. The baseball stadium, a John Q. Hammons project, will be north of East Trafficway, just east of Sherman Parkway, and is now in the design phase.

On the drawing board

Still in the preliminary stages of design is a three-structure complex that will include an exposition center, a multipurpose arena and a 665-space parking gar-age. "We're doing the detailed design on how they fit together and how they fit in that space between Hammons Tower and the Shrine Mosque," said Alexander.

All three projects will take up the space between East Trafficway Street and St. Louis Street, so the complex will have two fronts, opening up to both streets, he said. The city-owned garage, which is being designed by H.O.K. Architecture, a Kansas City firm, will be expandable, Alexander said. Pellham-Phillips-Hagerman Architects-Engineers is designing the arena, which will seat up to 7,000.

Butler, Rosenbury & Partners is handling the design for the exposition center. According to Tim Rosenbury, partner in charge of the project, design has just begun, with preliminary ideas presented to the project manager and the other architects involved.

"We meet about every two or three weeks so it can be a coordinated effort," he said. "It's exciting that we have different firms working together on the different projects so they'll each have their own unique style but will fit together."

The convention floor of the exposition center will be at least 40,000 square feet, Rosenbury said. The building will have at least two levels, with the convention floor one level below St. Louis Street, almost at the level of East Trafficway Street.

"People attending events will enter on St. Louis, then enter a concourse that will take them down to the expo floor," he explained. The floor will also connect to the arena floor, and the two buildings will share a common wall.

The exposition center will also connect to the existing University Plaza Trade Center, which will undergo renovation, he said. "Springfield will be able to offer to conventions and shows a true complex that will offer the exposition center, the trade center and the arena."

According to Alexander, the parking deck should begin construction next year, while the exposition center and ar-ena will probably follow within the next two to three years. "In the end, I think the community will be happy with what they see," he said.

Long-term project

The completed Jordan Valley Park is approximately a 20-year project, Alex-ander said. The quarry located beside National Avenue is an example of a longer-term project. "We are in the process of beginning the reclamation process," he said. "It's going to take at least 10 to 15 years to fill a portion of the quarry and make it into an amenity re-quested by the community." Eventually the area will become a sunken garden, a place that could be used for wedding receptions and other gatherings. "The first step is partially filling it in."

In addition, the city has received some federal funding for land acquisition for future phases of the park and is starting that process.