St. Louis Park Recreation Outdoor Center

In Minnesota, playing hockey is a pastime. A rite of passage. Whether under the lights at a neighborhood park, or inside one the many small-town arenas, the rink is a gathering place. Our goal for St. Louis Park’s new Recreation Outdoor Center (ROC) was to design a structure that salutes Minnesota’s hockey roots while also operating as a year-round, multi-use facility. The result? A truly unique indoor-outdoor experience that offers ice in the fall and winter, and dry concrete and/or turfed field in the spring and summer. The expansion complements the city’s adjacent sports complex, which features two indoor ice rinks and an aquatic park.

As the seasons change, the facility transforms to accommodate a variety of community events. Like Minnesota Wild hockey practices and open skating in the winter. Soccer games on the turfed field in the spring and summer months. And movies, picnics and wedding receptions on the concrete floor on warm days. With expansive vaulted wood beams covered by a lightweight fabric roof and sides open to the outdoor elements, the possibilities are endless for St. Louis Park’s new addition, developed with purpose, designed for function and built with care.

In addition to accommodating a multitude of events, the $8.5M facility was designed to maintain a low operating budget with innovative and sustainable technologies. The team created a comprehensive stormwater management plan to accommodate the structure’s heavy columns, refrigerated slab and unique roof structure. Along with our engineering partners, we designed pipes, roof drains and catch basins to collect rainfall and excess runoff, then directed to a new underground infiltration system. And, when natural daylight won’t suffice, energy-efficient LEDs kick in to illuminate evening activities – because there is nothing better than playing a game under the lights.