OTL Fountain Adds Sparkle to Downtown Des Moines

A new vision for Downtown Des Moines is now a reality. Cowles Commons, a transformation of an existing landmark plaza, opened to the public this month as 56 LED lights in Lauridsen Fountain illuminated the city square.

The 120 x 50-foot participatory water feature, OTL’s first project in Iowa, includes 17 nozzles, each creating an angled arch of water varying in height from two to 20 feet. Individual arches rise and fall in choreographed succession to create rolling waves of movement. The entire fountain is contained within a zero-depth membrane pool that is expected to entice pedestrian waders while allowing easy drainage for use of the entire space for events. LED lights are controlled by two separate manifolds to allow flexibility in the number of nozzles put into operation.

OTL completed all mechanical, electrical and lighting services for the interactive water feature. The water feature designer is Fluidity Design Consultants and the general contractor is The Weitz Company.