Office of General Services (OGS) | New York State Police Training Academy, Main Lecture Hall Renovation

Project Size: 4,500-sf, 300+ seat capacity
Project Location: 1220 Washington Ave, Albany, NY 12226
Project Team: Office of General Services (OGS)
Completion Date: October 2016
Construction Cost: $3.5 Million
Owner Contact: Douglas Scott, Associate Architect, OGS

Before Renovations

Project Request:

To update the main lecture hall at the NYS Police Training Academy, which was constructed in 1968, into a state-of-the-art facility.

Project Solution:

The 300-seat main lecture hall, as well as all its finishes, furnishings and equipment, were original to the building. The state police wanted a professional, uniform appearance using traditional materials in a state-of-the-art facility without flashy theatrics. Within the existing footprint, the design completely transformed the space’s appearance while optimizing acoustics using wall and ceiling panels of various acoustic qualities. Beneath the wood and fabric wall panels is a highly functional array of absorptive and reflective materials strategically located using acoustic modeling. The curved wood ceiling panels over the stage also are based on modeling to provide optimal diffusion of sound from the stage to the audience. The cherry wood pilasters have a structural component. Buried beneath the wood pilasters are vertical steel reinforcing columns for the existing CMU walls which were found to be structurally unsound. Ductwork in the lecture hall was completely reconfigured with a double-walled low-velocity duct to minimize sound in the lecture hall. State-of-the-art audiovisual system were installed in the main lecture hall and the four smaller lecture halls that now will have connectivity with each other. New custom designed HVAC equipment was provided.  New energy efficient LED lighting was designed and, together with the AV systems, are integrated into a digital control system. Based on the client’s needs we programmed pre-sets that can instantly provide the right levels for every function, greatly simplifying controls.