Danny Jones Recreation Complex

Summarize the project's program, features and achievements?

The Danny Jones Recreation Complex in North Charleston is a 51,038-square-foot tilt-up facility offering indoor swimming and basketball amenities, along with outdoor tennis courts and a roller hockey rink. Combined with existing football and baseball fields, it forms a premier multi-sport complex for the local community.

The building utilizes insulated tilt-up panels for the pool, gymnasium, and exterior walls, while non-insulated panels create interior hard walls and eliminate the need for structural columns. Spandrel panels support larger glass openings and wide interior corridors. Careful coordination with the glass manufacturer ensured precise, slanted punched openings for seamless window installation. Specliner #5733 – Machado Flute formliner was used extensively throughout the project to create textured accent walls, as well as architectural detailing above and below window and door openings, enhancing the visual appeal of the facility’s exterior. Architectural details include two large cast outlines—a swimmer and a basketball player—symbolizing the facility’s primary activities.

What obstacles were overcome related to the schedule, budget, program, specification, site, etc. on this project?

Construction of the Danny Jones Recreation Complex faced several logistical challenges due to site constraints and an aggressive schedule. The presence of an in-ground pool, equipment pits, and recessed flooring for tile significantly reduced available surface area for casting panels, necessitating the use of off-building casting beds. With limited budget for additional casting space, the project team successfully coordinated panel casting on newly poured tennis court and roller rink slabs.

To meet the tight timeline, pool construction was carried out concurrently with foundation work, slab placement, and tilt-up panel installation—rather than sequentially—ensuring the facility was delivered to the City of North Charleston on schedule. The erection phase presented further complexity, particularly in coordinating crane access and panel bracing around the pool area. Strategic planning allowed the crane to be temporarily positioned inside the building to install critical panels, brace them externally, and then exit to complete the remaining erection without delay.

Please communicate any engineering complexities or unique features of the panel design for this project?

Within the pool area, special design considerations were implemented to address the corrosive environment. To prevent corrosion, all structural connections were detailed using stainless steel, and the roof structure was protected with four coats of specialized epoxy paint. To support the significant truss loads required to clear-span the pool and gymnasium roof, 16" x 16" concrete tilt-up columns were engineered and strategically integrated into the design.