Architects: Walter Zick and Harris Sharp Engineers and Architects (Original Design), Robert Larson (Remodel), Assemblage Studio (Remodel), also remodeled by a variety of design firms.

Frazier Hall named in honor of Maud Frazier, former Principal at Las Vegas High School , Clark County Legislator and early leader in funding of many Clark County School District and UNLV projects. One of the first campus buildings constructed when UNLV was called Nevada Southern University and part of University of Nevada Reno . Frazier Hall houses student enrollment and telecommunication functions. The Master Plan calls for the demolition of this building with its functions being moved to the Student Services Building additions. In its place, an entry mall to the campus and a structure for telecommunications will be built. This entry mall will open up the interior of UNLV to Maryland Parkway and Midtown UNLV beyond.

Photos by Paulette Nelson, 2003 and August , 2005

UNLV Facilities information

Architect: Walter Zick and Harris Sharp Engineers and Architects

Serving as a significant visual point for UNLV, this International Style building house administration, broadcasting, auditorium and classroom facilities. The public has a love/hate (mostly hate) response to the building. Built during height of asbestos use in the U. S. , it's expensive to maintain and remodel due to asbestos content. Currently shown in the master plan, this building may be a candidate for replacement in the future.



UNLV Facilities information

UNLV Facilities Information

ASL Resources

5. Central Desert Complex
Architect(s): Assemblage Studios
Year: 2002

This complex of 12 modular buildings, each with 3,600 square-feet of space, was created to house faculty temporarily displaced from their facilities due to campus renovations. In order to make these buildings seem more permanent, they were set into a concrete slab instead of placed on blocks. This strategy also saved the architect from having to provide multiple stairs, ramps, and decks for each building. To help the modular units blend into their surroundings better, exterior elements were taken from neighboring buildings such as galvanized panels (Lied Library) and stucco coloring (residential buildings, the bookstore).

UNLV Facilities information

ASL Resources (01/19/06)

7. Reynolds Student Services Complex
Architect(s): Holmes Sabatini Associates (now Dekker Perich Holmes Sabatini)
Year: 1994

This building acts as the gateway to the second north-south academic mall on the campus for students and visitors entering from the Thomas & Mack parking lot. A tall colonnaded canopy clearly defines the entrance. A skylight that resembles the top of a lighthouse provides natural daylight into the facility. This project won an AIA Nevada Design Award in 1995.

UNLV Facilities information

ASL Resources (04/13/06)

Architects: W2C Architects and Ellerbe Becket, respectively

The Thomas & Mack Center and the Cox Pavilion is a +18,000 seat and +4,000 seat, respectively, arenas that host NBA games, major concerts National Finals Rodeo, Professional Bull Riding events, conventions and other major events.

UNLV Facilities information

10. Lied Library
Architect(s): Leo Daly Architects and Welles Pugsley Architects
Year: 2000

The massive $55.3 million ($15 million was donated by the Lied Foundation and its trustee C. Hixson), 302,000 square-foot library has become the jewel of the campus as UNLV strives to be recognized as a “premier metropolitan university”. Arguably one of the more technologically advanced libraries in the country, the Lied Library features an automated book retrieval system, media distribution system, digital id for library materials, and an Information Commons Area with over 100 computers, a five-story atrium space, and escalators. Lied Library contains 28 miles (153,000 linear ft.) of shelving, a 2 million volume capacity, and 800 hard wire network ports. The masonry veneer gives the building a sense of permanence while the reflective zinc cladding expresses the technological advancement found within. This project won an AIA Nevada Design Award in 1996.

11. Bigelow Physics Building
Architect(s): Holmes Sabatini Associates (now Dekker Perich Holmes Sabatini)
Year: 1994

This $11 million, 69,000 sq. ft. building used a berming strategy to maintain a low profile frontage along the mall. Its low profile reinforces open space instead of bringing attention to a specific building. Bigelow Physics house research, teaching, demonstration, and astronomy laboratories, as well as offices. Light wells with shading devices provide internal daylighting to public areas of the building. The laboratories are windowless with a specialized air filtration system, isolation of all sources of electrical interference, floor isolated from walls, and carefully controlled room temperatures. These features were incorporated into the design in order to protect sensitive lasers and other equipment from unwanted environmental influences. Several labs are equipped with traveling cranes capable of moving heavy equipment. Teaching and astronomy labs are on the second floor. All research laboratories are on the first floor and staggered along the southern wing to reduce corridor length and to create a semi-enclosed exterior courtyard. The building has an industrial-functional aesthetic with conduits and wires exposed throughout the building. This gives the impression of a work in progress, which is the case. As research projects change, communication and power lines can be moved to support new projects without extensively renovating the building. The building's ‘V' shape form provides separation of facility's functions. One wing contains mostly offices and lecture halls while the other wing houses laboratories, preparation rooms and shops. Many references to physics and mathematics can be found throughout the building. These references include a “sine curve” wall enclosing the south end of the courtyard, a two story sinusoidal glass wall facing the courtyard, colored banners representing the light spectrum hanging from the ceilings in public areas, and Isaac Newton's apple tree found in the main entry plaza. The building displays a machine-like aesthetic with its purity of form, simple material, and exposed mechanical and electrical systems. Vaulted roofs above laboratories are reminiscent of the Quonset huts used as early research facilities at Los Alamos , New Mexico where the atomic bomb was first tested during World War II. In the courtyard, palm trees placed in mathematical progression represent the expanding university posited by the Big Bang Theory. Concentric-colored concrete circles in the plaza radiate out like ripples from a pebble drop into calm water.


UNLV Facilities information

Architects: Tate and Snyder (now Tate Snyder Kimsey Architects) and KGA Architects

This cast-in-place concrete structure houses the Engineering programs. The airplane hanging in the lobby was donated by the Hughes Corporation. The plane is a model of the H-1 racer built in the 1930s and designed to be the fastest plane for it's time. The plane obtained a speed of 352 mph in 1935 and set a transcontinental speed record in 1937 by traversing the U.S. in 7 hrs. 28 min. The plane contained technical innovations like flush rivets and retractable landing gear for reducing air drag on the aircraft. An $82 million, 200,000 sq. ft. expansion designed by Dekker Perich Holmes Sabatini is scheduled to be completed in spring 2007. The expansion will be located on the north side of this facility.

Photos by Ernie Podaca, July, 2005

UNLV Facilities information