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Kirk Family YMCA

The adaptive reuse of a historic lyric opera theatre restores the YMCA's presence within the Kansas City urban community.

Information

Location Kansas City, Missouri
Size 61,345 SF
Completion 2021
Services Architecture, Community
Project Type Community (private)

BNIM worked with the YMCA of Greater Kansas City to renovate and adaptively reuse a historic theatre in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, as the Kirk Family YMCA. Components include a gym for adult and youth sports programming; functional training areas for cardio and strength; group fitness studios, indoor track, basketball court; a four-lane practice lap pool and family aquatics pool; kids’ zone; and an outdoor sports field which is built atop the building’s stormwater detention facility that can store up to a 72-hour period of stormwater. In addition to these health and fitness amenities, the YMCA provides four community meeting rooms and a demonstration kitchen that create spaces for community meetings, training, classes, and the YMCA’s community support services. Our team also worked to support the relationship between the Kirk Family YMCA and its new community neighbor, Crossroads Charter Schools, creating opportunities for school programs.

Impact + Innovation

Originally constructed as the Ararat Shrine Temple (c. 1926), the building has contributed to the Kansas City area in a number of ways during its lifetime, including serving as a space for the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, giving the building its most recent Lyric Theatre namesake. Today, the building brings the Y back to the urban core after more than two decades, providing a welcoming and inclusive center for health, fitness, and community. A key goal of this adaptive reuse project was to preserve original streetscape massing and historic features of the existing theatre while supporting the Y’s programmatic needs, unique to a health and fitness center. The resulting design is a facility that interweaves historical elements with renewed purpose and modern-day use, serving as a valuable community resource.

Process

After significant study to reuse the existing amphitheater, it was determined that removing this portion of the building allowed the primary function of the building to transition from musical performance to health and fitness while also making necessary code and accessibility updates to the facility. This new construction provides a more streamlined and navigable building to create clear paths and greater accessibility for all building users. In order to maintain the original streetscape massing and historic character of the building, the design team reviewed the historic detailing and worked closely with the contractor and owner to set expectations for reconstruction of the historic west façade, and careful restoration and preservation of the remaining edifice. This reconstructed façade is delineated from the historic but blends seamlessly with the existing fabric, meeting the owner’s vision and community interests.

People

Team

Client

YMCA of Greater Kansas City

Collaborators

Antella Consulting Engineers, Inc.
Structural Engineering Associates, Inc.
Henderson Engineers Inc.
Larkin Aquatics
Taliagerro and Browne, Inc.
Land 3 Studio, LLC
Lamp Rynearson & Associates
Odimo
F.S.C. Inc.
Technology Group Solutions