Grand Island Readiness Center

The Grand Island Readiness Center is 92,000 square foot and home to Nebraska’s Army National Guard aviation units. The facility is used to train 226 part- and full-time soldiers in aviation, as well as countless soldiers who will pass through its doors for training and skills development. The ARNG’s facility includes an assembly hall, administrative offices, recruiting center, fitness center, maintenance training bay, lockers, classrooms, kitchen, storage and POV/GOV parking.

The Army National Guard (ARNG) Grand Island Readiness Center is home to Nebraska’s ARNG aviation units, who have a rich history of service, both foreign and domestic. The facility is used to train 226 part- and full-time soldiers in aviation, as well as countless soldiers who will pass through its doors for training and skills development. Upon entering the center, the space opens to strong angles, pulling the eyes along the narrow spine of the building. Environmental graphics subtly represent helicopter flight patterns, bases, and campaigns through intersecting lines spanning the entire wall, wrapping onto the soffit and connecting with glass to create one continuous composition. The graphics on the glass obscure the view of soldiers exercising in the fitness room, though still provide a reveal at the top and bottom allowing passers-by a sense of activity occurring in the space. The purpose of the history wall is to represent the history of the Nebraska ARNG in a way that informs the public and the soldiers while blending seamlessly into the architecture concept and design. Conceptually, the sawtooth design of the wall represents the rapid rotation of helicopter rotors. The panoramic background of the wall depicts mountains, plains, desert, forest, and the terrain of many of the Nebraska ARNG’s campaigns. The information is designed along a uninterrupted linear timeline that is used to anchor the content and guide a viewer down the wall. The background is used to pull the entire design together into one cohesive, meaningful composition. In the assembly hall, large photographic panels represent the foreign and domestic service of the ARNG units that use the center. The panels are a symbol of pride and a grand backdrop to deployment ceremonies and assemblies. The photographic treatment ties the graphics of the assembly hall and history wall together to tell one cohesive story.