Project Overview
An abandoned historic railroad line and available commercial property in downtown Kaukauna led the City to build a new city hall/police station—a municipal center under one roof. raSmith provided structural engineering, among other services, for this center. Relationships formed with the project’s architect, as well as the contractor, created a trusted partnership for the new fire station that was planned across the street.
The design team encountered poor soils at both the municipal center site and the fire station site, which is located on the site of an existing, partially demolished building. Our structural engineers faced an even greater challenge of building back onto portions of the existing building that was to remain.
Structurally, both projects use a combination of loadbearing masonry and steel framing that provide desired durability for police and fire purposes, in addition to open space and a skylight. While constructing the municipal center, the team noticed the skylight’s manufacturer provided incorrect dimensions—the framing needed to fit a smaller-diameter skylight. With resourceful problem solving, raSmith developed a new framing solution allowing pieces erected to that point to remain in place, saving the contractor time and money.
Photography copyright: Eric Oxendorf/SEH
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