The West River Community Center design inspires participation, offering guests both active and passive opportunities. An open plan provides exciting visual connections throughout the facility, with interior spaces sculpted around user activities.
Interior design elements combine modern amenities with a Western flair. Utilizing indigenous materials, interior finishes blend with and are enhanced by the surrounding landscape. A color palette emphasizing green and brick red also brings the feeling of nature indoors. By integrating interior and exterior spaces, the facility maximizes opportunities for natural light, takes advantage of panoramic vistas, and defines twostory spaces with a sense of place. The area’s extensive Native American history is referenced in entry lobby tile patterns that mimic tribal pottery and clothing. The climbing wall features a replicated dinosaur spine that stands out in relief to recall the region’s many archaeological discoveries.
The center’s exterior was inspired by Theodore Roosevelt’s famous quote about the Badlands of North Dakota “A chaos of plateaus, ridges and valleys.” A large portion of exterior wall is designed to mimic the famous Badlands banded rock. The area surrounding the center has been developed to accommodate baseball and soccer fields, plus an ice rink. Plenty of room exists for future expansion, as the site is slated to eventually become a recreational campus.
