Rochester Recreation Center: A 77,000 SF Roofing Project Built for Performance

When the City of Rochester needed a roofing solution for one of its most heavily used public facilities, they turned to Schwickert’s Tecta America. The Rochester Recreation Center is a busy, multi-use sports complex that serves the community year-round – and keeping it protected from the elements is no small job. This project covered 77,000 square feet across two very different environments: an active ice rink and an indoor pool. Each one came with its own set of challenges, and each one required a completely different roofing system to get it right.

From September 2024 through June 2025, our team delivered a customized, multi-system solution that protected every inch of this facility – on time and built to last.

Not all commercial roofs are the same, and this project is a perfect example of why one-size-fits-all solutions don’t work for complex facilities. The Rochester Rec Center presented two distinct environments under one roof – literally.

The pool area creates a high-moisture environment. Heat, humidity, and condensation work constantly against the building envelope, making vapor control a top priority. Without the right system in place, moisture infiltration can compromise insulation, damage structure, and lead to costly long-term problems.

The ice rink is a different challenge entirely. Cold surfaces, temperature differentials, and the mechanical demands of a working arena require a roofing system with serious durability and long-term performance credentials. The materials and methods used over a rink have to hold up under conditions that would wear out lesser systems quickly.

Schwickert’s addressed each section with the right tool for the job – and the expertise to execute both at the same time.

For the pool areas, the team started by repairing the existing vapor barrier – a critical first step in any high-humidity environment. Getting the vapor barrier right protects the insulation and the structure beneath it from the moisture that pools and natatoriums generate constantly.

Once the vapor barrier was in solid shape, new insulation was installed to bring the thermal performance of the roof up to standard. The team then applied Carlisle 60 mil TPO membrane using a cold process installation method.

TPO, thermoplastic polyolefin, is one of the most widely trusted single-ply roofing membranes in commercial construction. At 60 mil thickness, it offers exceptional puncture resistance, UV protection, and long-term weatherability. The cold process installation was the right call for this environment, allowing the work to proceed without introducing open-flame or high-heat methods near an occupied facility with sensitive indoor conditions.

The result is a roof system that handles Minnesota weather on the outside while protecting the delicate humidity balance on the inside.

The ice rink sections called for a completely different approach. For these areas, Schwickert’s installed a multi-layer Garland Built-Up Roofing system – a time-tested method that delivers outstanding durability for demanding commercial applications.

Built-up roofing, commonly called BUR, gets its name from the way it’s constructed: in layers. Each layer builds on the last, creating a roof system with serious depth and redundancy. Here’s how Schwickert’s built it out for the Rochester Rec Center:

The system started with two base plies, providing the foundational layers of the assembly. Over the base plies, a modified field membrane was installed, adding flexibility and resistance to thermal movement – important in any climate, but especially in Minnesota where temperature swings are significant. A modified flashing membrane followed, reinforcing the critical transition points where the roof meets walls, curbs, and penetrations. These spots are where most roofs fail first, so getting the flashing right is essential. The system was finished with a flood coat and gravel surfacing, applied with hot asphalt. The flood coat seals everything together, and the gravel surfacing provides UV protection, ballast, and fire resistance while giving the roof the rugged, proven finish that BUR systems are known for.

This is not a lightweight or temporary solution. It is a heavy-duty, commercial-grade roofing assembly built to protect a high-traffic public facility for decades.

What makes this project stand out isn’t just the square footage – it’s the coordination required to deliver two completely different roofing systems on the same building, on the same schedule, without disrupting an active public facility.

The Rochester Recreation Center was in use throughout much of the project. That means the Schwickert’s team had to manage sequencing, material staging, and daily operations around a functioning building – the kind of logistical challenge that separates experienced commercial contractors from the rest.

From the first site visit in September 2024 to final completion in June 2025, the project stayed on track through a Minnesota winter, multiple material systems, and the demands of working on a government facility with public accountability. Every phase was coordinated, every system was installed to specification, and the finished product was delivered on schedule.

The Rochester Recreation Center is a great example of what Schwickert’s Tecta America does best – showing up for complex, large-scale projects and delivering the right solution for every part of the job. Whether your facility has one roof system or five, our team has the experience, the materials, and the coordination capability to handle it from start to finish. If you have a commercial roofing project coming up, we’d love to talk. Contact Schwickert’s Tecta America today to get a quote and find out what the right roofing system looks like for your building.