Many of the photos so far have been of duct work and torn apart spaces as this renovation project took an existing building back to stud so that it could be modernized and updated for the new use. The challenge with renovation work and a change of use to a structure is that often the existing systems do not meet the new requirements. This project required an entirely new heating and cooling system to provide efficient comfort and required fresh air needs for a daycare function. We also have added a sprinkler system which is required for this use because, well, babies are slow to run out of a building if there is an emergency.
We are keeping the existing tall slender windows that were already in the structure, which will allow the new occupants, who are maybe shorter than the former professional office staff, to have views of the downtown hustle and bustle. The glass in these opening will be replaced in phase 2 to bring a higher level of energy efficiency to the building.
There are also some remnants of old that will become a really cool imagination space in the future. Can you imagine these steps that once led to the adjacent building as a castle for play? Could it have a forest mural on the wall behind with mountains on each riser? Perhaps each level of step is a different scene in an imaginative play? We will see as the work continues.
For other updates on this project see posts here andhere.
When the owners of a local Oriental Restaurant decided they wanted to create a new concept, we got busy with the builder, Constable Construction, figuring out the right solution. This project is taking shape and finishes are now being installed. The open dining area will be inviting and the drive-thru will be heavily used as the food, we already know, will be incredible! The Oriental Express and Catering Company will soon be a household name in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County.
We have experience with multiple types of restaurants and knew what questions to ask to figure out how this one would function. Creating an efficient kitchen is a key to making the business work as restaurants have slim profit margins and need to be quick and efficient. We learned along with the business owner where to find and source the right equipment and how the flow in the space should work. The dining area has an efficient floor area, so we made the ceilings tall and brought in a lot of light. This will allow for a very comfortable and inviting space.
The exterior of the building needed to be eye catching to draw in customers. We blended stone and stucco to create a modern overall aesthetic.
Understanding the importance of space, we located the business office above the storage room, allowing for a compact floor plan while still allowing natural light into the work room (often a restaurant office is left interior to the business with no views out). We hope this will allow for not only a comfortable and inviting work space, but the ability for the manager to see how things are going downstairs when they are balancing the books.
We cannot wait for this restaurant to open so we can taste their creations!
Gaines Group Architects has a new home in Charlottesville at 910 East High St. We hope you will Celebrate with us in Charlottesville for a Chamber of Commerce Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting on Wednesday, July 10th from 9am – 11am. Stop by on your way to work and grab a bagel and some coffee, stick around until 10am for a ribbon cutting, then hang out for a bit to let us hear all the incredible things you are doing.
After spending a few years on Pantops Mountain, it was time for us to get back to our roots in downtown Charlottesville. Our former offices have been located on Water St. and Ridge St., just a few steps from the downtown walking mall, and now, as they say, “Guess who’s back, back again”! We are excited to be able to walk to downtown local restaurants, so reach out to us if you ever want to grab lunch.
This bright blue house is the first time in a few decades our office has been in a space we didn’t design, so stay tuned, we are scheming for a very cool future! Please feel free to stop in and visit with our team, hear what they are working on, and see our new space. We look forward to connecting or reconnecting with you soon.
Parking:
– Limited parking behind building and on nearby streets. – Short walk from Market Street Garage. The first hour at the Market Street Garage parking is free.
Beck Builders has started moving dirt at Massanutten Resortfor a new custom home. This contemporary architectural creation will be flooded with natural light and have some incredible views. Working on a tight-sloped site in this resort has several challenges: driveway, garage, water management, and rock to name a few. However, our client had a clear vision for what they wanted in this incredible design and we were able to fit the pieces on the site and create just the right solution.
Our process for working on a custom home is to work hard to figure out the life our client wants to live on this particular building site. We have a series of questions to get to know each client’s goals and values, how they function in a space, and how they would enjoy this new home. We want to know functionally how spaces need to work with each other and what the dream day might be. When designing a custom solution, we help facilitate the goals our clients dream about. It is a design process that not only focuses on beauty but functionality and buildability too. We want to make it efficient and affordable to build and operate, so we work hard to find the values in our client’s dreams and incorporate those into the structure.
In this design, we used a variety of techniques to show the client what the spaces would look and feel like as they make critical design decisions. Keeping the high ceilings and glass wall facing the views was an important element in their vision. This, along with the narrow lot and slope, gave us the parameters to design within. With an understanding of building science and materials, we created an efficient structure to build that will be aesthetically striking and provide our clients with functional spaces to live comfortably.
Knowing the clients comes from listening to the clients. There are a lot of conversations that happen throughout the design process and the more we listen, the more we learn and can design the right solution.
Hearing from the builder that our complete design will make the build go smoother reassures us that our process works and provides greater value – as time is money when it comes to construction. We strive to achieve that balance between beautiful and functional design in every home we create. We want builders to be proud of what they are constructing. Most importantly, we want our clients to live their dream life in their new space.
The Eastern Mennonite Elementary School gathering space is taking shape as foundation walls are revealed. It has been such a joy to return to this project to add the gathering space to the Elementary School we helped create years ago. In the design of this addition, we once again worked hand in hand with the teachers and staff of Eastern Mennonite School to make sure we addressed concerns, enhanced their ability to serve their students, and created a comfortable space for their students. I am really looking forward to seeing how the soft northern light will bath over this space and how the warm radiant floors designed by Rockingham Engineering will make the space enjoyable year-round.
At the site meeting this week I was thrilled to hear from Herr and Company that the foundation walls and grade worked out exactly as we had planned. This will allow for multiple access points and the ability to open this space up in comfortable weather as a pavilion space. The connection to outside / nature is a core component of this schools educational standards. Designing a commercial space that can serve as both an indoor and outdoor space has some building science challenges. Working with the design team we were able to come up with solutions that will be durable, sustainable, and comfortable.
This addition will allow for large group gatherings in the building and provide flexible small study rooms, a warming kitchen, storage space, and outdoor solid surface gathering areas.
More on the addition of the gathering space in Phase II Here.
This past month, I had the opportunity to travel to Peru. I am always grateful for the opportunity to travel because it broadens my world and introduces me to people both different and similar to me. Not to mention, I get to try new foods (like alpaca!). Of course, while I was there, I couldn’t help but look at the architecture. Below are snippets of the designs and structures that caught my eye.
Lima
My first stop in Peru was to Lima. Lima Architecture varies from district to district, but the architecture that I saw in Miraflores, a more touristy and commercial district, was more similar to what I’ve seen in U.S. cities. Along the Miraflores Malecón (Direct translation: “breakwater”. You can think of it like a boardwalk or costal path on top of a cliff by the ocean.), there were beautiful parks, sculptures, and a butterfly garden path.
City view from my window.
Fun shapes and color accents.
In the middle of the four lane road, there was a beautiful tree-lined path for walking, biking, and sitting on the benches.
The buildings closer to the coast were especially colorful.
Cusco
It wasn’t just the architectural design of the buildings that I was fascinated by. I fell in love with the narrow twists and turns of the Cusco streets. Although this sort of city layout is not as natural for me to navigate, it always gives me a sense of exploration and curiosity. And even though the streets and buildings weren’t laid out into a squared grid, I was pleasantly surprised to be able to locate myself by day 3 of walking around. … but boy the 11,000 ft. altitude and hills did not make walking around easy!
The building shapes weren’t shapes I see in Harrisonburg, or anywhere in the U.S. that I’ve visited. My mind was never bored as my eyes traveled the lines, jumping from one building to another.
The buildings around my Airbnb reminded me of this ink drawing that I was working on, and they gave me inspiration to complete it.
I have never seen round, concrete landings like this that seem to float outside. These were a common sight.
Spectacular detailing on a church in Plaza de Armas, Cusco.
Sacred Valley
Wow, this valley was sacred indeed. Our guide, Will was fantastic and emphasized that he was giving us an etnohistoria (translation: ethnohistoric) tour of the Inca locations, meaning the history he told us centered indigenous people’s perspectives, documents, culture, and oral history, etc., instead of history written by the white, European perspectives. He encouraged us to approach learning that day with an open mind and “blank page.” Learning from the Incan people’s perspectives helped me to understand the importance and purposes behind the architecture we visited.
This is so important for learning about cultures different from our own, especially when the history we have heard about a group has not been from them. This is important in architectural practice as we design with communities.
Architecturally, the landscape, building, and community design were expertly created to fit with the landscape and topography. Descriptions are beside each picture below.
As our guide taught us to do, I say thank you to these sacred mountains that we traveled in that hold these sacred places.
Ollantaytambo: A beautiful town within the mountains that has Incan ruins. Some of the Incan buildings in the mountains were made to store food for the years that El Nino caused a dry season in this valley. These buildings were strategically oriented towards the wind. Incans carefully designed holes in the building to allow for airflow from the wind that would prevent mold during years of storage.
The extensive stepped terraces at Moray were designed and used by the Incans for agricultural research. By planting on the different levels which varied in ph levels and other conditions, the Incas developed over 4,000 different potato varieties and hundreds of corn varieties!
Salineras de Maras, or The Salt Mines of Maras, were designed on the sloping landscape with an intricate network of canals. The water on each flat slowly evaporates in the sun and the remaining salt is harvested. They are still in use.
Massive stones on top of the structure in Ollantaytambo had portions that jut out to fit together, much like Legos.
Arequipa
Arequipa is a city surrounded by the Andes mountains and the volcano, Misti. The buildings in this city were again full of colors and shapes that I don’t see everyday in the U.S. There were also stunning churches with intricate carvings and lush parks scattered throughout the city.
Spiral staircase and rounded landing that I saw in Cusco too.
Of course, trying lots of yummy food with my family.
A question posed to me, now posed to you:
Waiting for my delayed flight at the Lima airport (at 1am), I had a conversation with a man I met in the food court that spanned everything from religion to culture to language to architecture. He asked me if there was anything like Machu Pichu and other structures from indigenous groups in the U.S. I was stumped. He pointed to the pyramids in Egypt and Tikal in Guatemala and asked why we didn’t have things like that.
I assume there are many reasons why I couldn’t think of any such locations or structures: my European ancestors intentionally and strategically destroyed elements of indigenous culture, which included architecture, as a way of assuming power? Yes. Was it just not a part of my school curriculum? Probably. Maybe the nations that lived in the now U.S. used materials that were more disintegrable? I don’t know enough about that. Maybe the groups were more nomadic? I don’t know enough about this either. Was it the fact that I was trying to speak in Spanish at 1am? Yeah, probably a little bit of that too.
I’m curious, do you know of any places? Let me know in the comments.
*Edit: Later I googled Indigenous structures in the U.S. and low and behold, there are many! Check out a few cultural, architectural sites here.
