Today we enjoyed attending the ribbon cutting ceremony for the City of Houston’s new Transportation & Traffic Maintenance Facility. Located minutes from downtown Houston, the facility boasts several unique design elements and provides the Public Works & Engineering Department with much-needed warehouse and office space.
The 40,000-sf facility includes 15,000 sf of office space for traffic signal operations and central dispatch, 25,000 sf of warehouse space, a shop area for manufacturing traffic signs, street marking equipment, a paint shop, and material storage. Parking is also provided for 125 fleet vehicles and 150 staff visitors.
The building embodies a theme of energy and movement and directly reflects the responsibilities of the occupants. Salvaged street sign poles create a vertical sun screen and are used for all guardrails, traffic lights and recycled traffic signs accent various spaces, wayfinding plaques represent signal colors, and a decorative yellow strip on the exterior of the building matches the color used to stripe roadways.
A patio adjacent to the break room provides direct views of the downtown skyline to the east and skylights throughout the building flood the space with natural light. Another unique element is that windows are set to provide panoramic views to employees sitting at their desk. The new facility is pursuing LEED Silver.
