by cbhendricks | Jun 13, 2023
With 108,000 sf under roof, this logistical warehouse facility has an award-winning design. The Tilt-up Association recognized the project in their 2014 Tilt-Up Achievement Awards. Featuring bold colors, and fin walls the structure blends industrial durability with innovative aesthetics to create a striking building. The facility has 16 dock bays and potential for up to 8 tenant upfit spaces. The flexibility of design is required as upfit is a second phase scope of work. Tilt-up concrete building systems create a durable long-lasting solution and increases the speed of delivery while maximizing the investment of the client. Working with Nielsen Builders in a design-build capacity delivers industrial clients a one-stop contact to achieve their development priorities.
by cbhendricks | Jun 8, 2023
PROJECT LOCATION: Charlottesville, Virginia
CONTRACTOR: Coleman Adams
PHOTOGRAPHER: Barry Rickert
STRUCTURAL ENGINEER: Moler and Associates
CIVIL ENGINEER: Dominion Development Resources, LLC
ELECTRICAL & PLUMBING ENGINEER: Master Engineers and Designers, Inc.
Luxor, a 24,000 sf multi-tenant office building located on Pantops Mountain, is raising the bar in Charlottesville for innovative office space. Featuring a vegetated roof, high performance insulation and heating / cooling system, and low VOC interior finishes, Luxor is not only energy efficient, it is healthy. The design does not stop with the building’s walls, it also features multiple exterior gathering spaces from the courtyard between the two building to the garden space that creates a buffer to the street. Using native plantings, strategically placed retaining walls, and local vernacular, this building project has defined a compelling entrance into the city. The tenants in Luxor include a yogurt shop, phone retailer, architectural office, developer headquarters, massage studio, hair salon, bank, and doctor’s office. The diversity of the tenants is balanced by the flexible signage system that keeps a consistent aesthetic through the project and ties the parts into a holistic aesthetic solution.
by sitemanager | Feb 21, 2023
We love working with repeat clients as we already have learned some of their language and communication styles. It is also always fun to learn a new project type and while we have done barns in the past, we had never done a horse barn so this was a fun learning opportunity. We started with an existing eight-stall rudimentary barn and teamed with Robb Construction to create a state-of-the-art twelve-stall barn that includes spacious common areas and a one-bedroom apartment. The vision driving the project was to have a boutique facility readily able to accommodate both our client’s horses and their client’s horses. Lucas Equine built our custom 12 x 12’ stall fronts and removable partitions, each with its own commercial-grade fan, lights, a generous ceiling height, and a Dutch door facing outside. Six of the stalls feature access to 12 x 24’ sand paddocks. All construction and design decisions were made with safety and comfort in mind for the horses. The Stave Mill Farm project is a great example of collaboration. Our role in the project as architect was to make sure the structure works and the room sizes met the criteria we were provided. There were other experts that knew the program better than us and we were counting on them to teach and lead us through the design process to make sure we met the goals of the project. The results are incredible and the barn and apartment as the state-of-the-art barn that the client described to me in the first visit to the site.
by sitemanager | Feb 20, 2023
The Eastern Mennonite School (EMS) renovation project had a straightforward goal, convert an existing three-story office building into an Elementary school. The added challenge with any of our non-profit clients is using their budget as efficiently as possible and creating opportunities through architecture to highlight their culture. Therefore, this project focuses on sustainability / creation care, an important element of the culture of the school. Using our understanding of building science, we were able to save an existing building, incorporate environmentally sensitive design strategies, as well as highlight those elements for the students in the building. The design of the EMS facility maximizes daylight into all classrooms, provides multiple points of exterior access to allow for environmental teaching opportunities, and has flexible room sizes for diversity of class settings. The existing building footprint provides 9 classrooms, a teaching kitchen, teacher workroom, and restroom facilities. The additions to the existing footprint house circulation towers, the administrative wing and a phase II of the project which will allow for large scale gatherings. Working together with EMS teachers, administration, and students, the design evolved into a space that will enhance learning opportunities as well as highlight building systems. Viewing windows allow for students to explore “how a building works.” This experiential learning component marries sustainability and building science with traditional math, science, and social studies. Creating unique opportunities using architectural elements is a key component of our design strategies for our clients.
by sitemanager | Feb 20, 2023
PROJECT LOCATION: Harrisonburg, Virginia
CONTRACTOR: JM Apartments
PHOTOGRAPHY: Jeremy Keegan
The Chesapeake Western Depot is a 1913 National Historic Register former passenger train station gem in downtown Harrisonburg. Unfortunately, it has seen a lot of tragedy. The structure, built out of spite according to a newspaper article, was home to what would be a financially insecure small-line passenger and freight rail line. This “crooked and weedy” headquarters features a robust two-story brick building with large windows used for natural light and natural cooling. Open lattice wood walls above white brick inside resist moisture (1913 Building Science). 16′ tall oak ceilings are in what once were the passenger waiting rooms. The second floor that once housed corporate CW offices is now our office, and the rear that was once a freight hub is now a storage warehouse for Monger Lumber. There have been 5 fires in the building, including the 5 alarm fire of 1982 which was the most damaging, shutting down the building for 35 years. The result was water and fire damage, destroying plaster and wood before we arrived to piece the architecture back together. In formulating a plan to save the structure, and our goal was to maximize the value of the restoration. Our client wanted to restore the historic character, tell the story of the building, recognize and overcome the comfort challenges of a brick building by appropriately insulating, and repair the water and fire damage in historically accurately ways, all while maintaining a conservative budget. We worked within the National Historic Preservations Standards and Guidelines to find the appropriate solutions for this structure and our clients goals, working hard to find the right places to restore and others to replace. Using our knowledge of building science, we created comfort and reduced energy bills while maintaining the historical accuracy of window sill depth and managing moisture flow through our masonry walls. We are very proud of the end results and welcome you to stop by and take a look at the building.
