HOUSTON — Designers found durability, options and dependability from MBCI to construct a recreational getaway for anyone with and without special needs.

The 102-acre Morgan’s Wonderland Camp is located in northern San Antonio, Texas, offering summer-camp-type experiences for up to 500 campers and staff at a time. Gordon Hartman is the founder of the world-renowned theme park and other “Ultra-Accessible,” fully inclusive attractions where “people of all ages and abilities can come together for fun and a better understanding of one another,” according to the camp’s website. 

“The design goal for Morgan’s Wonderland was to create an enjoyable environment for everyone,” says Robert Luna, president and CEO of Luna Middleman Architects in San Antonio. “We wanted to use products that had varied color options and the durability that stand the test of time.”

Luna says those involved in the design reviewed several manufacturers and found that MBCI had the products, colors and profiles that would work best for the Morgan’s Wonderland Camp project. He says the overall selections, profiles and availability of products for varied uses made the selection of MBCI an easy decision.

MBCI metal roof and wall panels were used in the construction of three of the main buildings on the facility, chosen because of the manufacturer’s wide selection of offerings.

Red Dot Buildings of Athens, Texas, a long-time customer of MBCI, constructed the dining hall, arena and maintenance building using a plethora of MBCI products.

For the dining hall, the list of 24-gauge panels includes Ultra-Dek® for the roof in Fern Green (35,958 square feet); Artisan® for the soffit in Fern Green (8,980 square feet) and Desert Sand (2,714 square feet); PBR for the wall panels in Desert Sand (13,410 square feet), Fern Green (241 square feet) and Galvalume Plus® (84 square feet); and PBC for the wall panels in Desert Sand (1,223 square feet) and Galvalume Plus (359 square feet). The arena features 38,694 square feet of 24-gauge PBR roof panels in Galvalume Plus.

“The arena is a really awesome combination building, housing indoor basketball courts on one end with a creative art studio on the opposite side,” says Darrell Geisendorff, Red Dot Buildings regional sales manager, Central & South Texas. “The roof had a few valleys, but nothing difficult for our team to handle. The arena was a very clean traditional pre-engineered arena with over 40 polycarbonate skylight panels within the roof system to provide natural light during the day for the riders below.”

The maintenance building features 26-gauge PBR panels in Charcoal Gray (12,422 square feet) on the roof and in Desert Sand (6,713 square feet) on the walls.

“This is a pretty standard and well-functioning metal building with 20 polycarbonate skylights,” Geisendorff says.

The Skylights installed were Acrylit from Glasteel.

“Red Dot and MBCI have a relationship that goes back to the '80s,” Geisendorff says. “Over the years, both companies have grown together in the industry and each knows what the other needs and expects. We think that is why we work so well together; there is no guesswork. It’s a business relationship that takes decades to build and one that Red Dot is proud to have.”

According to the Morgan’s Wonderland Camp website, the inspiration for the camp came from Morgan Hartman, the 28-year-old daughter of Gordon and Maggie Hartman, who has dealt with cognitive and physical special needs since birth. The nonprofit camp offers reduced admission fees to those in need and is supported by a large group of corporate sponsors.

MBCI and Red Dot Buildings are proud to be a part of a nonprofit project that will serve a vital need for decades.