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Taylor Place shows how a coordinated building team fit two 13-story student-residence towers on a 1.21-acre downtown Phoenix site while Arizona State University was advancing another major project nearby. The 352,000-gross-square-foot housing project used construction-manager-at-risk delivery, phased work packages, early trade involvement, column-hung shoring, tightly controlled logistics and desert-responsive design. Building Design + Construction’s 2010 case study reports a May 2007-to-February 2009 construction period and a $71,007,264 construction cost. Those figures, forecasts and productivity claims belong to the historical project record; they are not current operating data or independently verified benchmarks.
What was Taylor Place?
Taylor Place was planned as downtown housing for 1,284 Arizona State University students. The project comprised two 13-story residence towers, shared student amenities and ground-floor retail on a site totaling only 1.21 acres. ASU’s 2005 decision to expand downtown also produced the nearby Walter Cronkite School project, so Taylor Place had to advance in an already active urban district.
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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →The article identifies the building team as SmithGroup (architect, engineer, architect of record and interior architect), Capstone Development Corp. (owner and developer), Paul Koehler Consulting Structural Engineers (structural engineer) and Austin Commercial (general contractor). Arizona State University and the city of Phoenix were also recognized as members of the award-winning team. The delivery method was construction manager at risk (CM at risk), which allowed construction planning and design coordination to proceed together rather than waiting for a completely finished design.
| Project fact | Historical figure reported in 2010 |
|---|---|
| Building type | Student housing with two 13-story towers |
| Site | 1.21 acres in downtown Phoenix |
| Gross floor area | 352,000 square feet |
| Planned residents | 1,284 students |
| Construction period | May 2007 to February 2009 |
| Construction cost | $71,007,264 |
| Delivery method | Construction manager at risk |
Prices checked November 2026.
These are project-history figures from the Building Design + Construction report, not a current appraisal, cost update or confirmation of present occupancy.
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How did the team compress the schedule?
The central schedule strategy was to make design progress stay ahead of field production. When construction started in May 2007, 80% of the drawings were reportedly ready. Instead of treating design, estimating and trade procurement as separate handoffs, project management divided the work into packages and brought subcontractors into preconstruction.
Early subcontractor participation gave the team a way to coordinate the budget, constructability and the project vision before each package reached the site. On a compact urban parcel, that preparation reduced the risk that a late detail or unavailable trade would stop the next operation. The article says the project was completed in 22 months, a schedule that depended on overlapping design, procurement and construction activities.
What was column-hung shoring, and why did it matter?
For portions of the structure, the contractor used column-hung shoring. Instead of carrying the load of a newly poured deck through the slab below, the shoring transferred it through the building’s columns. That allowed crews to begin follow-on activities closer behind the concrete operation.
According to the 2010 case study, mechanical, electrical and plumbing work, shaft framing and material stocking could proceed sooner because the floor below was not waiting for conventional slab-supported shoring to clear. The article reports that the approach cut labor time for the affected portion of the work by as much as 50% and increased overall productivity by an estimated 40%. Those percentages are estimates attributed to the article; they should not be treated as universal results for every high-rise project.
- Plan the structural sequence early. Column-hung systems affect engineering, temporary works, crane planning and trade access, so they must be coordinated before concrete placement.
- Release usable areas sooner. As shoring moves through the structure, shaft, MEP and stocking crews can work in spaces that would otherwise remain blocked.
- Keep design information ahead of the pour. The benefit is lost if embeds, sleeves, shafts or service routes are unresolved when the structure reaches them.
- Track the claim by work package. Taylor Place’s reported 50% labor-time reduction applied to the affected portion, not necessarily to the entire project.
How were deliveries and crane picks managed on a site without a laydown yard?
The constrained parcel left little room to store materials or stage equipment. The team scheduled deliveries and crane picks through the main construction office on a first-come, first-served basis. The case study says that central scheduling kept the site organized without relying on a separate laydown yard.
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That approach required one visible source of truth for truck arrivals, hoisting windows, street access and work-zone conflicts. It also made logistics a production activity rather than an administrative afterthought. A delivery that misses its slot can affect the crane, the trade expecting the material and every crew queued behind it, so the office had to coordinate the entire chain.
On a similar site, a practical control sequence would include:
- A daily delivery and pick register maintained by the main office.
- Defined arrival windows and a contact person for every subcontractor.
- Confirmation that the receiving zone and crane are available before a truck leaves its origin.
- Contingency slots for weather, traffic or a delayed preceding lift.
- Immediate communication when a load, lane or hoist must be rescheduled.
The article does not provide a modern software workflow or claim that this method fits every project. Its point is more basic: when space is scarce, disciplined sequencing can substitute for storage area.
How did the project control envelope and concrete quality?
Taylor Place used two notable quality-control measures. First, the contractor hired a third-party consultant to review building-envelope shop drawings and to inspect and test wall and roofing systems. Second, the team built concrete mockups that the architect, contractor and owner had to approve.
Third-party envelope review added an independent check before assemblies were installed repeatedly across two towers. Mockups gave the parties a physical reference for finish, joints, transitions and workmanship instead of leaving those decisions to drawings alone. Together, the measures addressed two common high-rise risks: a detail that looks acceptable on paper but fails at full scale, and a repeated installation defect that is discovered only after substantial work is complete.
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How did the city and phased permitting affect the handover?
The city owned a portion of the site and established phased permitting, according to the case study. That arrangement allowed Tower One to open in August 2008 with a temporary certificate of occupancy while Tower Two continued toward completion in early 2009.
Phasing can create operational complexity: life-safety systems, access routes, construction separation and resident protection must work simultaneously. In Taylor Place’s case, the approach converted a single final handover into an earlier partial opening followed by completion of the second tower. The report places overall construction completion in February 2009.
What design choices addressed Phoenix’s desert climate?
The design team oriented the buildings along an east-west axis to support daylight while limiting east-west facade openings, which reduced exposure to low-angle solar heat gain. South-facing windows received horizontal overhangs. At ground level, a shaded garden plaza and a cantilevered trellis along pedestrian streets helped create more usable outdoor areas in a hot, bright climate.
The strategy combined orientation, facade proportion and external shading rather than relying on mechanical systems alone. It also recognized that student housing needs comfortable circulation and gathering spaces, not just efficient bedrooms. The article describes these elements as part of the project’s response to Phoenix conditions; it does not provide a post-occupancy energy study.
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Water conservation included dual-flush toilets, low-flow bath fixtures, waterless public urinals and collection of fan-coil condensate for landscape irrigation. The article estimates a 43% reduction in water use compared with a baseline design. That is a project-specific estimate reported in 2010, not a measured current performance figure.
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Other reported measures included high-efficiency lighting, programmable thermostats, operable unit windows, recycling and sorting, low-VOC materials and finishes, and a green housekeeping program. ASU did not require formal LEED certification. Instead, the team sought a project it described as at least LEED equivalent, with SmithGroup chief designer Edward F. Garcia, AIA, LEED AP, identified in the article’s discussion of that approach. The source contains no direct quotation from him.
What amenities were included in the historical project description?
The case study lists a fitness center, lounges and study spaces, laundry facilities with online status information, sky lounges, a dining hall, Wi-Fi and cable service. It also describes a 10,000-square-foot dining hall and an 11,000-square-foot convenience retail mall. About 1,100 square feet of that retail area was rented at the time of publication.
Those details explain how the project combined housing, services and street-level activity on a small parcel. They are historical descriptions, not confirmation that every amenity, tenant or service remains available today.
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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsWhat happened to occupancy after completion?
The 2010 article reported an expectation of 85% occupancy in fall 2010 as part of a four-year lease-up plan. That was a forecast at the time, not a measured present-day occupancy rate. The source does not establish Taylor Place’s current management, occupancy, tenancy or operating status.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What can construction teams learn from Taylor Place?
The case is useful less as a recipe than as a sequence of mutually reinforcing decisions.
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- Freeze the next decision before the next operation. Having 80% of drawings ready at mobilization gave procurement and field crews information early enough to overlap.
- Invite trades before the work is bought. Preconstruction input connected budget, constructability and the owner’s goals while changes were still affordable.
- Design temporary works as production infrastructure. Column-hung shoring was valuable because it opened a path for MEP, shafts and stocking, not merely because it was a structural alternative.
- Put logistics under one authority. First-come, first-served scheduling through the main office created a workable system where the site could not store every delivery.
- Validate repetitive assemblies physically. Envelope review, testing and approved concrete mockups addressed defects before they multiplied across the towers.
- Coordinate partial occupancy from the start. Tower One’s temporary certificate of occupancy depended on phasing, separation and permitting being treated as design and construction requirements.
- Match environmental measures to local conditions. Orientation, overhangs, shading, water reuse and efficient fixtures responded to Phoenix’s heat and water demands.
None of the reported percentages should be copied into a new project’s business case without checking structure, labor market, code requirements, schedule, site access and measurement methods. The transferable lesson is the integration of decisions: schedule, temporary works, logistics, quality and climate response were planned as one delivery problem.
What are the limits of this historical case study?
Building Design + Construction published the account on September 13, 2010. It is a detailed trade-publication report, but it is not current project documentation, a post-occupancy evaluation or an independently audited productivity study. The 22-month duration, $71,007,264 cost, 50% labor-time estimate, 40% productivity estimate and 43% water-use estimate should therefore be read with their original date and scope.
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The report also does not establish current rents, occupancy, management, retail tenancy, amenity availability, energy use or water consumption. Readers evaluating Taylor Place today need more recent records from the university, owner, city or facility operator. For understanding how a team delivered a dense, fast-track student-housing project, however, the documented sequence remains clear: advance design, involve trades early, release follow-on work, control every delivery and verify critical assemblies before repetition.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was Taylor Place built?
The reported construction period ran from May 2007 through February 2009. Tower One opened in August 2008 under a temporary certificate of occupancy, and Tower Two was completed in early 2009.
How many students was Taylor Place designed to house?
The project was planned for 1,284 students across its two residence towers. That is a design capacity reported in the 2010 case study, not evidence of current enrollment or occupancy.
Did Taylor Place receive LEED certification?
No formal LEED requirement was imposed by the university, according to the article. The team instead pursued a project it described as at least LEED equivalent, using measures such as low-flow fixtures, efficient lighting and low-VOC finishes.
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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallWhat does CM at risk mean in this project?
Construction manager at risk is a delivery method in which the construction manager contributes during design and later holds construction responsibility, commonly including a guaranteed maximum price arrangement. The case study identifies the method but does not publish Taylor Place’s contract terms or guaranteed maximum price.
