A multiphase development plan to expand Poarch Band of Creek Indians’ Wind Creek Wetumpka Casino included an entry porte-cochere, lobby rotunda, 2,500 gambling positions on an 85,000-squarefoot gaming floor, food and beverage areas, and a parking garage addition. Architecture firm Hnedak Bobo Group Inc. intended the design to reflect the concept of being shaped by wind, water and nature through time. Additionally, the design was based on the ribbon dance in Wind Creek tribal culture. The side of the casino near the Coosa River mimics the waterway’s curves and is clad in overlapping materials to link the interior and exterior.
ProClad Inc. installed approximately 30,000 square feet of zinc supplied by RHEINZINK America Inc., and 15,000 square feet of painted steel material supplied by Western States Metal Roofing. Flintco Construction was the general contractor.
The project, which started in May 2012 and was completed in December 2013, utilized RHEINZINK’s 1-mm, 20-gauge, prePatina Bright Rolled Zinc. Additionally, Western States Metal Roofing’s 22-gauge steel Reveal panels painted in Weathered Metallic, Weathered Rustic and Champagne Metallic, represent autumn leaves blowing across the plain and contrast with the evergreens circling the site. RHEINZINK’s Zinc Flat Lock panels continue around the low-rise volume on the east side of the casino and clad a large expanse of the foremost façade. The zinc panels are interspersed with a layering of metal panels with various copper hues.
MetalTech-USA fabricated the Flat Lock panels and painted steel Reveal panels that envelope more than 45,000 square feet of the low volume. The 16 3/4-inch by 48-inch by 1-mm, diagonally oriented Flat Lock panels were installed over a hat channel furring system. The painted steel panels have an 11 3/4-inch face and 1/4-inch reveal. The diagonals were designed to alternate, which required different install directions, and different panel notching was necessary. Eric Simonsen, vice president of MetalTech-USA, was project manager. “We relied heavily on accurate panel counts from the installer to make sure we supplied the appropriate number of panels for each condition,” he says.
Owner: Poarch Band of Creek Indians, Atmore, Ala.
Architect: Hnedak Bobo Group Inc., Memphis, Tenn.
Supplier: Western States Metal Roofing, Phoenix
Installer: ProClad Inc., Noblesville, Ind.
Fabricator: MetalTech-USA, Peachtree City, Ga., www.metaltech-usa.com
Zinc: RHEINZINK America Inc., Woburn, Mass., www.rheinzink.us
