Burke Construction Group’s recently completed Corn Creek Wildlife Refuge Visitor’s Center is seeking Platinum LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The $9.9 million project, designed by SH Architecture, is a net zero energy campus. In other words, it produces as much energy as it consumes annually. The complex incorporates passive design strategies, plus photovoltaic arrays, and solar hot water heating. The center consists of an 11,000-square-foot concrete tilt-up building with interpretive exhibits, exhibit space, a gift shop, multi-purpose areas, classrooms and administrative offices. The building exterior was dressed using integral colored concrete in the exterior tilt panel and a steel trellis to minimize direct sun on the building walls. Other project components include an expanded parking area, new trail signage and landscape rehabilitation. The facility is located off of Corn Creek and Mormon Wells Roads, 23 miles north of Las Vegas. The 1.5 million-acre wildlife area was created in 1936 as a refuge for the elusive desert bighorn sheep.
