Honoring Legacy and Place Since 1905, Moana Springs has anchored Reno’s social and recreational life—from its beginnings as a hot springs bathhouse to a mid-century public pool. After the site’s closure and demolition in 2012, the community demanded its revival to honor its place from the past and express a bold refreshing new icon for the community. Design Intent The design team and owner recognized that the meaningful legacy of Moana Springs – an enduring community landmark since 1905 - deserved an architectural expression that both honors its history and redefines its presence for the modern era. Working within significant budget constraints, the team embraced a philosophy of essential design – achieving maximum impact through minimal means. Two simple, sculptural volumes are composed with a deliberate balance of glass, concrete, and warm-toned wood panels. This restrained yet refined material palette establishes a timeless, contemporary identity that reflects both the heritage and renewed vitality of Moana Springs. Architectural Expression and Context The architecture translates the language of water into form, light, and movement. Transparency is a defining motif: expansive glazing connects interior activity with Reno’s desert and mountain landscape. A sculptural stair tower—washed in luminous blue—becomes a beacon along the site’s urban edge, visible both day and night. The building’s material palette—precast concrete, natural wood, and glass—balances durability with warmth, evoking the tactile honesty of civic architecture. The design resolves complex site challenges: aligning with existing recreation fields, managing geothermal proximity, and addressing stormwater within a constrained urban parcel. Simple straightforward massing establishes human-scaled approaches and shaded entry sequences, while maintaining clarity of circulation between aquatics, fitness, and community spaces. Innovation and Execution Each design decision from materials to scale; reinforces civic identity and environmental performance. Clerestory daylighting reduces artificial lighting loads while animating interior volumes with shifting patterns of sun. The mechanical systems are optimized for aquatic energy recovery, and roof assemblies are pre-engineered for photovoltaic integration. Structural clarity and visible systems celebrate the “deconstructed box” functionality of the building while underscoring transparency as a design ethos. A Civic Catalyst The resulting composition transforms water into an architectural medium of connection. By blending history, art, and utility, Moana Springs embodies Reno’s evolving narrative—a city that values its past while investing in collective well-being. The project reestablishes Moana Springs not only as a pool, but as a civic heart: a resilient, inclusive, and inspiring space where architecture amplifies community pride.