Sanford Pentagon - Sanford Sports Complex

Sioux Falls, SD
Construction Cost: $20.6 million
Area / Square Feet: 152,967
Occupancy Date: October 2013

Located near the Sioux Falls Airport, the 162-acre Sanford Sports Complex serves the region’s youth sports teams, adult recreational sports enthusiasts and professional athletes alike. When it came time to design the centerpiece of this complex — an NBA-worthy basketball arena surrounded by community spaces — Sanford Health wanted to create an iconic structure to act as the premiere destination for basketball in South Dakota, with a distinctive pentagon shape identifiable from the air and a design that harkens to the 1950s era of basketball.

The resulting Sanford Pentagon features nine basketball courts, including Heritage Court, home to the NBA D-League Sioux Falls Skyforce. Upon walking into Heritage Court, materials and detailing — from a restored scoreboard to 1950s advertising of local sponsors — conjure a vintage-era vibe for players and fans. On both sides of Heritage Court are halls of fame, where the sensor-activated sound of squeaking shoes and bouncing basketballs complement multidimensional graphics.

Creative planning embraced the building’s unique shape, with lockers and support spaces fit into areas left after the nine courts were placed. By utilizing the design-build delivery method, smart material selection and efficient space planning, the building was completed at roughly half the cost per square foot of similar structures.