University of Iowa, Burge Residence Hall

Iowa City, Iowa

Firm

Rohrbach Associates

Client

The University of Iowa

Area

75,700 sq.ft.

Total Cost

$11,400,000

Completion Date

12/2004

The goal of this remodel is to provide the University of Iowa with a “flagship marketplace” food-service facility. The facility includes a range of food types and freshly prepared exhibition cooking.
The food service was designed to serve a peak meal volume of 2,800 meals for a weekday lunch through a marketplace serving concept. The project also includes renovation of all the existing food-service storage, production and dish room areas. The conversion of the existing facilities to a marketplace concept required the demolition, redesign and reorganization of the existing food-service spaces on the basement and first-floor levels.
As a part of this project, the basement and first-floor Burge lounges and lobby were renovated to meet entrance requirements of the food service, as well as provide updated facilities for the students in the residence hall. The existing primary north/south corridor was developed into a “Main Street” concept connecting the north entrance from Currier/Stanley halls and south entrance from Daum Hall and the campus to the new food-service entrance.
The complexity of the project stemmed from the requirement to keep the existing food-service operation open and functioning throughout the more than two years of construction. Construction consisted of four major phases and many user relocations.
The food service is based on a scattered marketplace concept. Each themed food-servery station is designed individually to accommodate preparation, exhibition cooking and serving within an overall marketplace environment. Display cooking and preparation is incorporated into most of these stations, and menu items are cooked from fresh ingredients in front of students.
The design style of the marketplace consists of an eclectic collection of traditional and modern cafe and marketplace-styled stations, intended to provide visual variety and create a fun interactive “food” environment. In its complete form, the design has a timeless quality, thus allowing for an extended and flexible use for many years.