PMC develops a Historic Revit Model of the Clarendon Park Community Center and Field House.

History of The Clarendon Park Community Center and Fieldhouse

Originally called the Clarendon Municipal Bathing Beach, was constructed in 1916 as a modern facility for one of Chicago’s most popular lakefront beaches. The structure began very close to the shoreline however, over time the land area between the building and the shoreline was filled to extend parkland and the addition of Lake Shore Drive. Today it is used as a community center and field house. Failure to address long-standing maintenance issues has resulted in a threat to the building’s future and use by the community. In mid-2020 a multi-million dollar plan was approved by the city to start the rehab process and save the Clarendon Fieldhouse. As part of the approval process for a historical municipal space, a historical record is required by the City of Chicago.

The Challenge

For years people would approach this task by manually producing 2D drawings of floor plans, sections, and elevations. As a result, this error-prone, manual approach leads to the architectural and ornamental details of these historic buildings being lost. By implementing their Reality Capture and BIM services approach to fully documenting a high level of detail on the building inside and out to produce a 3D Historic Revit Model. Using an array of reality capture technology, including laser scanners and drones, we were able to quickly capture all data necessary for the creation of a Revit model. On the software side, we deployed Revit, Revizto, and BIM 360 to develop and quality check the model.

The Solution

PMC has a long history of developing some of the most complex and difficult historic Revit models so we knew we would be up to the task of developing this model. On this project, the Historic Revit Model represents a complete “As-Built” condition record of its current state and condition at that time of documentation. With this accurately represented model, proposed renovation designs can be superimposed on the As-Built to help provide a better understanding of what it might cost, what it might take to build, and what it might look like so that at the end of the day the public might approve where their tax dollars are going. PMC’s client was pleased with the delivery and timing of the completed project.

Quick Facts

Clarendon Fieldhouse

4501 N. Clarendon Ave. Chicago, IL 60640

• Year Built – 1916
• Square Feet – 35,000
• Stories – 2

Hardware and Software Used

• Faro WebShare
• Revit
• Revizto
• BIM 360
• Terrestrial Laser Scanners
• Drones with photogrammetry

About The Author

Peter Abraham has joined the team at PMC as of November 2020, bringing with him 20 years of focused experience in Reality Capture services in the AEC market, that range from data capture expertise to Virtual Design and Construction management.