Dedicated to the education, preservation and study of marine environments, the aquar-ium's "principal goal is to instill a sense of wonder, respect and stewardship for the Pacific Ocean and its
inhabitants," said Warren Iliff, president and CEO of the facility. According to Iliff, the aquarium's Pacific Ocean theme features three distinct ecological zones — Southern California/ Baja, Northern Pacific and Tropical Pacific.
Locating the Southern California/Baja exhibit outdoors shaved money from the budget, and the outdoor environment rein-forced the building's connection to the site. Because the creatures in the exhibit are indigenous to the
Southern California region, they do not require a climate-controlled atmosphere.
In the lobby the aquarium begins to bring the ocean indoors with three preview tanks of the major exhibits, covered by a trio of wave-like
metal roofs. The west wall and entryway feature an aluminum curtain wall system of blue-green glass, reminiscent of waters off the Pacific coast.
The aquarium's tanks total more than a million gallons, including a
360,000-gallon coral reef exhibit. In the coral reef tank, visitors can watch trained divers feed the colorful fish. The aquarium holds more than 12,000 animals, spanning 500 species of marine life. This project differed from
other projects of a similar nature, since the exhibit design and the architectural design were completed simultaneously. "Many aquariums designed in the traditional style end up looking and functioning like housing for the exhibits
only.The architectural character is somehow separate from the exhibits," said Nelson. "[Here] the simultaneous nature of the design means built-in integration of the architecture and the exhibits."
Local families, area schools
and tourists benefit the most from the aquarium. "Exhibits are designed for easy accessibility for children," he said. "The acrylic viewing windows into tanks often reach the level of the floor to allow children and all visitors to
get an up-close and personal experience."
A whole exhibit designed for children, called Kid's Cove, features countless interactive exhibits for a fun and enriching experience. Children can walk through larger-than-life
whalebones, learn about sea creatures and experience the touch tanks packed with ani-mals within reach.
According to Nelson, the design of the lighting and acoustics was critical. Interior treat-ments were selected for their
acoustical value and ability to merge into a whole design. The great hall of the main lobby is made of 12-inch-deep metal slats spaced 12 inches apart to create an undulating form that transmits from the curved roofs above,
providing acoustical value, he explained. To carry out the overall design theme of the building the lighting highlights the forms of the building, and animated lighting effects were introduced to enhance the shapes of the
curved roofs. Lighting for the exhibits was created by the exhibit designers, and each individual exhibit has a unique lighting design.
The overall building "design minimizes the extent of expensive cast-in-place concrete
construction and maximizes the use of steel construction, which allowed the general contractors, which were a part of the team from the beginning, more flexibility in construction sequencing," said Nelson.
One of the
biggest construction and design challenges was performing such a complex undertaking in a relatively condensed amount of time. The project was funded with the sale of city bonds, which mandated a construction time of 28
months. The Aquarium of the Pacific was completed in half the time it might have taken for the completion of a comparable aquarium.
Due to the seismic zone in Southern California, a major consideration for everyone involved
in the project was the possibility of an earthquake. How would the tanks, the glass and the very structure of the building stand up to a large-magnitude earth-quake, and would the aquarium crumble from liquefaction?
"To mitigate
the marina site's potential lique-faction during an earthquake, the entire structure sits on a thick concrete mat foundation," said Nelson. "The interior concrete tanks, many located on the second floor, are designed to withstand
lateral earthquake forces. We used tremendous budget resources and time to resolve the liquefaction problem."
Poor soil conditions at the waterfront location and the issue of potential earthquakes meant conventional methods of
construction could not be used. "A method called soil stabilization was employed," said Vincent J. Quinones, project superintendent for Turner Construction Company, which served as the project's general contractor in a joint
venture with Kajima Construction Services. "This process entailed forcing 36-inch-diameter rock columns into the ground spaced at eight-foot centers, creating a very compact subsurface condition."
According to Quinones, more than
2,000 rock columns ranging from 45 to 85 feet deep were set during construction, resulting in a facility capable of withstanding a large-magnitude earthquake.
Another project challenge came when the mechanical, electrical
and plumbing (MEP); fire protection; and life support systems had to be developed to sustain the animals while enhancing the aesthetics and functionality of the design.
"The systems were developed to sustain the harshness of salt
water, so materials not commonly used were introduced, such as stainless steel, schedule 80 polyvinyl chloride (PVC), fiber reinforced plastic and fiberglass," he explained. "With the life support system design we had the challenge
of maintaining complete water changes every hour on the hour. This means completely changing 1.5 million gallons of water every hour."
In addition to all the challenges this project held, the team needed to take the animals into
account and work around them. "We had to work closely with the aquarium staff members to allow them to introduce the 12,000 animals in time for the grand opening," said Quinones. To accomplish this, the animals had to begin
being introduced seven months ahead of schedule.
As far as future expansion, said Nelson, the north end of the building and the entryway area represent a 30,000-square-foot site set aside for future growth, with knockout
panels designed into the northern exterior cast-in-place concrete wall. The panels are aligned with the main circulation corridors to allow continuation of the exhibit path.
"Value engineering was an integral part of the design
process," said Quinones. "Evaluation of cost was constant throughout the process to ensure we would not go over budget. We married design, cost and construction."
"The aquarium construction project was such a success that
we dedicated an entry plaque that recognizes the names of each of a thousand craftsmen who worked on the project," said Iliff. "We accomplished a very complex operation by great communicationand cooperation among everyone involved."
Quinones added, "This building was constructed with great pride."
