H&R Block Headquarters in Kansas City, MO

SEA provided the structural engineering for this 500,000 square foot office building with a 1,000-car five-story parking structure below grade.

Encompassing an entire city block, the project presented several challenges. As the 17-story elliptical tower started going up, the contractor was digging down for the adjacent five-story underground parking garage. Unique engineering solutions were used to protect the tower. The building’s piers were exposed, as the digging for the 1,000-car garage went deeper, so rock bolts were used to pin them back.

A third component of the project is a steel-framed building adjacent to the 500,000 square-foot tower. It houses training facilities, retail space and the Kansas City Repertory Theatre. The theatre auditorium is two-stories high and holds 300 seats. A catwalk, multiple lighting platforms and a series of rigging beams for additional lighting all hang from the auditorium ceiling.