Building design at 14,000 feet comes with many challenges, not the least of which are those involving materials and geotechnical conditions. In a recent article by The American Society of Civil Engineers' Civil Engineering Source, RTA Principal Stuart Coppedge, GWWO Architects Principal Alan Reed, HCDA Principal Steve Horner (structural engineering), and William Hoffmann Jr., senior engineering consultant for CTL Thompson, Inc. (geotechnical engineering), discuss how the Pikes Peak Summit Visitor Center design team handled everything from the effect of the extreme altitude on the concrete placement to protecting the summit’s fragile tundra ecosystem during design and construction.
