Project Highlights

• Column-free 84-foot long spans
• 10-story water slide tower with elevators

Overview

Two sides of the 75,000 square foot Water Park of America are enclosed by the adjacent Radisson Hotel. The other two sides are part of the water park structure itself, which is framed primarily with structural steel. Exterior walls are non-bearing masonry with light gage steel framing. A stepped roof is supported by structural steel columns encased in concrete and progresses upward from the hotel to the opposite corner of the water park, culminating in a 10-story tower that houses a water slide and elevators. To provide large open spaces without columns, three 84-foot long steel trusses were used to support 84-foot long steel joists. The exterior non-load bearing walls are masonry and light gauge steel framing. Structural steel diagonal braces provide bracing for the wind forces. Below the water park is a 10,000 square foot mechanical room made of cast-in-place concrete to house pumps and equipment. Two precast mezzanines of nearly 10,000 square feet provide amenity space above portions of the water features.