Jacobsen Construction

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SALT LAKE CITY — For Aaron Atkinson, building the award-winning Utah Tech University Greater Zion Stadium West Side Expansion held special personal meaning. 

“I had the opportunity to go to school here, so it meant a lot to me personally to get to do this project for the university I attended,” said Atkinson, Jacobsen’s project manager who led the stadium expansion. 

Atkinson was speaking at Utah Construction & Design’s annual awards breakfast Tuesday morning at the Little America Hotel, where two Jacobsen projects were celebrated as Most Outstanding in their category. Hundreds of professionals from the architecture, engineering and construction industries were gathered to honor the best projects in Utah over the past year, as awarded by a panel of eight expert judges. 

The Utah Tech University Greater Zion Stadium West Side Expansion was presented with the 2022 Most Outstanding Sports/Recreation Project award and the Liberty Sky high-rise in downtown Salt Lake City was named the 2022 Most Outstanding Multi-Family Project. 

“Some projects just have a special energy to them, and this project definitely had that,” Atkinson said of his team’s work at the stadium. “We’re thankful to Utah DFCM and to the university for the opportunity to work with them, and we’re thankful to VCBO Architecture for their commitment and partnership.” 

KC Burns, project manager at award-winning Liberty Sky, accepted the award on behalf of his team and gave remarks thanking the developers at Cowboy Partners for their vision for the unique rental apartment high-rise.  

“Thank you for bringing more community to downtown Salt Lake City,” Burns said. 

Burns also gave a shoutout to Liberty Sky’s other Jacobsen project manager, John Emery, saying “we certainly wouldn’t have been able to accomplish everything we did on this project without him and his sacrifices.” 

“On behalf of everybody who made this 21-story building possible, I want to thank Utah Construction & Design for this special recognition,” Burns added. 

Utah Construction & Design is a leading A/E/C trade publication that captures the imagery and stories of the state’s most imaginative and masterful building design. Its annual Most Outstanding Projects competition scores entries according to the criteria of innovative and functional design, contributions to the A/E/C industries and the community, quality craftsmanship, safety record and examples of teamwork and overcoming challenges. 

Details about Jacobsen’s winning projects are shown below. 

Utah Tech University Greater Zion Stadium West Side Expansion | Most Outstanding Sports/Recreation Project 
Owner: Utah Tech University 
Architect: VCBO Architecture 
Project Manager: Aaron Atkinson 
Project Superintendent: Rob Andreasen 

The Utah Tech University Greater Zion Stadium West Side Expansion provided a new skybox structure with state-of-the-art press box and event operations facilities, as well as a variety of premier seating opportunities including private suites, loge seating, club seating and a club lounge. To further cement the football program’s new Division I status, this project equipped the school with new athletic training facilities, an updated football team locker room and team lounge, and equipment issue spaces. The fan experience was enhanced by an updated entry plaza and stadium fencing. 

Design choices throughout every part of this project were intended to give the stadium a big-time college football feel more than ever before, accentuate Utah Tech’s new school name and branding in ways that would foster school pride, promote team unity and player morale, and add to the prowess of the football program’s recruiting efforts. 

Liberty Sky | Most Outstanding Multi-Family Project 
Owners: Cowboy Partners, The Boyer Company  
Architect: Smallwood 
Project Managers: John Emery, KC Burns 
Project Superintendents: Dennis Pack, Norm Litz, Dave Lange, Mike Dayhuff

Liberty Sky is downtown Salt Lake City’s first high-rise rental apartment community. With ready access to some of the locale’s favorite dining and entertainment establishments, the project included 21 stories, five parking decks and 278 new apartments that are helping to alleviate the city’s stressed housing market. Apartments feature floor-to-ceiling glass walls that provide natural light and exquisite views of the Wasatch Mountains. Floor plans include one-bedroom, two-bedroom and studio apartments. 

As a first-of-its-kind concrete build, apartments feature exposed concrete ceilings and walls — not the traditional sheetrock — and a variety of other high-end, modern finishes.  The project team worked together closely to ensure the complex was safely constructed on a busy, urban jobsite. 

Community amenities include a pool, theater, club room, office space, mail room, interior loading dock, five levels of secured parking, pet center and bike storage area. The rooftop gathering areas provide a full kitchen, club room, gaming room, theater, fitness center, multiple exterior heated gathering areas, grills and prep areas, three exterior fireplaces and a large programmable LED light box that stands out on the Salt Lake City skyline.