Innovative Teaming of Baseball and Transit

CHALLENGE:Target Field Metro Transit Station in downtown Minneapolis represents a whole new concept in public transit. Located adjacent to Target Field—home to Major League Baseball’s Minnesota Twins—the open-air, 60-acre multi-modal transportation hub is becoming a communal backyard for the Twin Cities. This urban gathering space uniquely integrates commuter trains, a light rail station, bus service, and parking with green space, retailers, an amphitheater, and more. INFLUENCE:Perkins Eastman Architects’ vision for Target Field Station extended well beyond transit. The goal was an iconic destination for game-day activities, as well as year-round activities and events like movie nights, festivals and concerts. At night, the lighting design provides “a visual signature” that extends to the illuminated underpass, says Paul Whitaker, senior lighting designer at the Minneapolis office of Schuler Shook. SOLUTION:The first hint of the unexpected occurs upon entering the space via an underpass. Overhead, the color-changing effects of iLight Hypnotica (RGB) fixtures provide a dynamic display, plus a preview of the sights—and vibe—to come. Whitaker has already used iLight Plexineon LED fixtures many times before with great success. Elsewhere on the project, he mounted Plexineon White 2X 2800 fixtures under benches to provide a soft glow for adjacent walking surfaces. The glow gives the paths a soft, romantic feel—in contrast to the bold, direct view of Hypnotica. Hypnotica offered many important advantages. “We like that it’s so thin,” Whitaker says. “It’s very compact, while providing a lot of light.” Also, by day the fixtures nearly disappear into custom channels designed by Perkins Eastman. And, Hypnotica is limitlessly programmable. “It’s programmed in very small increments,” Whitaker says. “It’s amazing how many different possibilities there are. Even though the fixtures are laid out in an irregular pattern, we were able to get many different effects with them.” null