Omni was selected, in association with Cannon Design, for the NKU Campus Recreation Center project. The project includes the expansion and addition to the Albright Health Center a 136,324 academic and campus recreation facility constructed in 1984. NKU’s goal for this project is to be transformative in terms of its impact on the building – the end result should be a building that is light, airy, inviting, transparent, active, energetic and exciting. NKU also requested that it set the stage to transform the student experience at NKU, much as the university‘s new, vibrant student union (also designed by Omni), which opened in 2008 and is located immediately to the north of the campus recreation center, has transformed the student experience. Phase I of this project includes construction of two artificial surfaced, lighted intramural fields on a site south of Johns Hill Road, and a building expansion of approximately 110,000 GSF. Phase II will include the renovation of the campus recreation center, and upgrades to existing HVAC and other infrastructure as needed to achieve code compliance, LEED Silver certification (or gold) and to improve occupant comfort.

As part of the collaborative and inclusive design process, the Omni team conducted a series of focus group sessions, where students, faculty, and staff were invited to provide input on project design and program.