The most striking element of the project is the new pedestrian bridge, which directly links this hotel to the center, a feature the city felt was needed in order to maintain Columbus’ viability to host large conferences.
For this stunning custom structure, a series of bent fin frames hang from a central pipe spine atop the walkway to support a glass floor with light steel framing. The pipe spans from the hotel to an inverted A-frame added at the existing convention center, and works together with diagonal rods in the floor to resist lateral loads and incidental torsion. Beyond the main span, hanging walkways thread through the existing convention building to complete the path.
The forms, profiles, details and interfaces were all carefully detailed between the architect and engineer, and coordinated between the steel and custom enclosure contractors to ensure the vision was brought to full completion. The main span bridge was constructed on site and lifted into place by a pair of cranes in a single day.
