Quackenbush Architects + Planners

Charles R. Drew Wellness Center

City of Columbia

Completion Date
2005

Project Budget
$7.2 Million

This new wellness and recreation facility for the City of Columbia, with its iconic presence on the north Harden Street thoroughfare, is expressive of the City’s commitment to the revitalization of Drew Park and the adjacent Celia Saxon neighborhood, an ambitious community plan implemented by the Columbia Housing Authority. The architectural solution features “outward reaching” roof forms denoting each major program element and rendered in glass, steel, and red brick. The short-course, Olympic sized pool is located behind glass walls facing Harden Street, allowing the activity within to be clearly observed along this busy street. Other wellness program elements in the 40,000 square foot facility include a basketball/volleyball gymnasium, cardio and weight rooms, and interior jogging track.

Represents experience of Doug Quackenbush as Principal-in-Charge and Barb Haller as Project Architect while at The Boudreaux Group.

Showcase Project

SCVRD Lyman Center

SCVRD Lyman Center

As the first new Center to be built for the South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department in over twenty years, the Lyman Center reflects the current mission and philosophy of the Department, providing counseling, rehabilitation, and work production services. The new 35,000sf structure, to be constructed in two phases, is subdivided into three major program components: an area office, a 10,000sf production/training floor, and a special services unit for occupational and physical therapy. Designed for an organization that values its relationships within the business community, the facility appeals to corporate and technological aesthetics while also blending with its organic, wooded site on the Middle Tyger River.

Projects Under Construction

Middle School Seven Construction

Middle School Seven Construction

Richland School District Two’s new Middle School is located in the rapidly growing Blythe­wood area and will initially accommodate 1050 students. The 40 acre site includes play fields and a planned area for a future center magnet program. The building was oriented north/south on the site to maximize daylighting in all the major learning spaces and in corridor and public spaces.

Latest Q+ News

OC Tech rolls out new Transportation Center

OC Tech rolls out new Transportation Center

Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College officially opened the doors of the Anne S. Crook Transportation and Logistics Center on Monday with pledges that it will provide workers with the skills they need and boost the region's economy. U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican who helped get $1.5 million in federal funds for the building, said "The building that I'm talking about today, named after a wonderful person, is going to allow this part of South Carolina to offer the educational skills to people who live in our area to get some of the best jobs in the 21st century."