Despite its location on a constrained site in downtown, Georgia Aquarium was designed with future expansion in mind.
Founder Bernie Marcus recognized that initial visitor enthusiasm would wane at the five-year mark. Reigniting excitement to increase revenue would require the addition of a new exhibit. While the question remained as to what that addition would be, Marcus was clear that he would retain key players responsible for bringing the Georgia Aquarium to life – Heery International as overall project manager, Brasfield & Gorrie (B&G) as general contractor and PGAV as architect.
Heery was responsible for selecting architect, designers, consultants, and more. Additionally, the team was responsible for site development, negotiation of zoning and permitting issues, financial record management and serving as Mr. Marcus’ representative on business issues pertaining to the expansion. A thorough analysis was done to understand a wealth of issues ranging from site capacity and pricing to animal and environmental requirements.
The results led to Marcus’ decision to erect an 84,000 SF facility featuring a 1.8 million gallon exhibit to accommodate Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins, viewing windows and a state of the art performance theater. Accommodating the new facility meant demolishing the existing home of the penguins and sea lions, and creating a temporary holding facility as well as a new penguin habitat. The team had to reroute all pedestrian flow from the parking deck to the front entrance via installation of a new covered walkway, which included two seven-stop elevators.
Having worked on the Aquarium created distinct advantages. While the team knew it was ahead of the game because of team spirit and project expectations already forged, communication plans already in place, and lessons previously learned, they clearly recognized the existence of new parameters.
First, they would have to carefully balance construction schedules to accommodate the Aquarium’s daily and special events’ activities. Second, they would have to be cognizant of how construction would impact animal health and well-being. To accommodate the latter, the team hired an acoustician to measure the impact construction equipment had on all animals near the expansion site. These results were used to determine how the team scheduled its efforts, what equipment they used and the duration of each construction activity. Third, the team would also need to work closely with the theatrical team and trainers to understand how the facility needed to function and what needed to be in place to create an environment in which the dolphins could live and train.
Given the project’s complexity and tight schedule, Heery separated the project into three different zones – theater, pools and gallery - with the contractor creating a work environment where several teams could be working concurrently. This ability to shave time from the schedule was critical given issues such as the recognition that the most efficient methods for breaking up existing concrete were too hard on the animals, the discovery that the dolphin tanks had to be turned over a month early and the increased duration of demolition due to the noise studies.