Archinect - News

Coffee, concrete & bulldogs: Look inside this cavernous new café space from TOUCH

2024-07-25T15:51:00-04:00

Thailand is home to an increasing number of coffee drinkers, and there’s lots of interesting architecture to keep up with the rising demand. Today, we’ll highlight a new coffee shop in the country's third-largest city, Nakhon Ratchasima, called French Kitsch III. The concept blends material inspiration and creative spatial configuration together with form.

Photo: Metipat Prommomate

Bangkok-based TOUCH Architect designed the structure with a total floor area of 2,900 square feet using concrete as its main building material, leaving behind an instantly “strong, memorable” image upon its opening last year. The team had imagined a wedding of kitsch and their client's love for French bulldogs in the form of architecture. What it produced, in the end, enhances the brand identity while creating a retail experience that's easy and sure to lure customers back for another sip.

Photo: Metipat Prommomate

The team of four architectural designers explains their work: “By us...

UNStudio completes Shanghai flagship store for Huawei behind ‘petal’ facade

2024-02-02T11:31:00-05:00

UNStudio has completed a flagship store for the Chinese communications giant Huawei in Shanghai.

Designed in collaboration with Huawei’s internal design team, the store seeks to create an “experience-rich concept that brings people, nature, and technology together and caters to consumer preferences.”

Image credit: Wen Studio

Image credit: Huawei

According to the architects, the design of the two-level store was inspired by biophilic forms that transition between indoor and outdoor conditions. Throughout the scheme’s interior and exterior, recycled materials are integrated to reduce the project’s environmental footprint, while detachable prefabricated systems are applied on floors and ceilings.

Image credit: Huawei

Image credit: Wen Studio

The building’s facade makes reference to the algorithm underscoring Huawei’s polar codes technology, with petal-like features appearing to be in different stages of growth, evolving in scale and rotation to form an “integrated geometric system that com...

BIG completes award-winning The Spiral tower in Manhattan

2023-10-25T19:57:00-04:00

BIG has shared photos to follow the firm’s completion of the new 2.8 million-square-foot The Spiral office tower in Midtown Manhattan.

Located at the entrance to the High Line Park on 34th Street between 10th Avenue and Hudson Boulevard, the 66-story structure rises to a total height of 1,031.5 feet and offers the neighborhood skyline a distinctive new visual identity taken from its stepped silhouette and a ribbon of outdoor terraces that cascade down the setback facade to a street level podium.

Photo © Laurian Ghinitoiu

The design team, which also included Adamson Associates, made wind- and drought-resistant biophilic elements a central part of the building’s exterior, working to unprecedented new heights for commercial high-rises. Certain plant species were selected for their ability to flower as early as February, in combination with evergreen ivy varieties. The program also creates flexible workspaces and includes an exclusive clubhouse on the uppermos...

Kohn Pedersen Fox co-founder A. Eugene “Gene” Kohn passes away aged 92

2023-03-09T17:29:00-05:00

Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) co-founder A. Eugene “Gene” Kohn has passed away today in New York at the age of 92.

Kohn was a graduate of his hometown University of Pennsylvania and went on to found KPF along with his classmate Sheldon Fox and architect William Pedersen in 1976 after working for Welton Becket Associates' operation in New York.

From there, early commissions for One Logan Square in Philadelphia and 333 Wacker Drive in Chicago helped shape the firm’s trajectory through the 1980s, eventually ending the decade with a slew of major corporate commissions – 900 North Michigan Avenue, the CNG Tower, and 311 South Wacker Drive – included in its growing international portfolio.

KPF co-founders Sheldon (Shelley) Fox, Bill Pedersen, and Gene Kohn. Image courtesy KPF

By that time, the firm had become a known entity among other commercial giants such as SOM and Gensler. An AIA Architecture Firm Award followed in 1990 and would help Kohn and his partners expand into new practice areas w...

An industry expert discusses what’s holding back the use of 3D printing in commercial construction

2023-02-06T08:45:00-05:00

While the government has doled out grant money to research 3D printing capabilities in space, and several proof-of-concept projects from bridges to Army barracks have garnered headlines, the applied use of 3D printing in commercial construction remains nascent. Patti Harburg-Petrich, principal in the Los Angeles office of U.K.-based engineering firm Buro Happold, says the real culprit is likely one that all new building innovations are forced to navigate: the building code itself.

Harburg-Petrich pointed to the limitations of rebar on a recent design-build she advised at Woodbury University as evidence of the negative influence of building code restrictions, even in research and development. She also predicted airport design to be a potential growth sector and said the technology could perhaps be better applied to individual project components like (mechanical, electrical, and plumbing) MEPs as it currently stands.

“If you can take advantage of industrialized construction and still be able to produce something that is bespoke, that leads toward a much faster pace of adoption,” she told Construction Dive. “If you can do something with less material, or put the pieces together faster, there are all kinds of cost savings right there, and all sorts of non-monetary benefits as well. “

...

Santiago Calatrava unveils high-end Düsseldorf complex named Calatrava Boulevard

2023-01-26T12:00:00-05:00

Santiago Calatrava has unveiled a design proposal for a luxury mixed-use complex in Düsseldorf, Germany. Named Calatrava Boulevard and situated on Düsseldorf’s swanky Königsallee, the 375,000-square-foot development includes workplace, luxury retail, and upmarket restaurant spaces.

Image credit: Santiago Calatrava LLC

The scheme’s signature architectural element will be a curved, vaulted 135-foot-long roof orientated towards Martin-Luther-Platz, shaped to remain below the typical height of high-rise buildings in the area. The complex’s remaining roofscape will be topped with landscaped terraces containing integrated solar panels.

Image credit: Santiago Calatrava LLC

Inside, the first two levels of the project will contain 160,000 square feet of luxury restaurant and retail space, while the upper levels will house 236,000 square feet of office space. The internal facade is clad with what the team describes as “sinusoidal waveforms” that sweep towards the external facades to create unit...

HWKN's upcoming commercial tower will bring a 'grade A, sustainability-certified workspace' to London's Canada Water Dockside

2022-12-02T14:24:00-05:00

UK real estate developer Art-Invest has announced Matthias Hollwich and the team at HWKN Architecture will be the designers for a new commercial tower at the Canada Water Dockside in London. The tower will be one of three new commercial buildings built on the 4.5-acre development, which will be master-planned by BIG.

The New York-based studio will make its UK debut by reportedly designing a 1.5 million square feet of "grade A, sustainably-certified" office workspace for up to 10,000 workers. The project includes 100,000 square feet of "affordable offices for small businesses, alongside community spaces and other amenities" located on the building's ground floor.

"Having worked with Matthias [Hollwich] and his team previously we knew his visionary and innovate approach would be well suited to Canada Water Dockside, and we’re delighted to be bringing his architecture to the UK for the first time," Luka Vukotic, the Development Director for Art-Invest, said in a statement.

Image court...

OMA's Harajuku Quest center performs an urban balancing act in Tokyo

2022-11-03T13:30:00-04:00

Construction has begun on the OMA-designed Harajuku Quest project in Tokyo. The 84,000-square-foot mixed-use scheme will contain commercial and cultural functions set within a building form shaped by two differing urban contexts that interact with the site.

Concept diagram. Image credit: OMA

To the south, the Harajuku Quest site is bound by Omotesando, an imposing axial thoroughfare defined by wide tree-lined sidewalks, and a string of flagship retail stores occupied by global brands. In response, OMA’s scheme addresses the street with a “monolithic, transparent face” where a setback towards the top brings light to the interior, and a setback at the ground encourages pedestrian movement through the site.

Concept diagram. Image credit: OMA

Section diagram. Image credit: OMA

To the north, meanwhile, the site addresses Oku-Harajuku, a more intimate “village” townscape defined by tight, organic streets and smaller-scale buildings occupied by independen...

Dodge Momentum Index drops slightly in August as Q4 approaches

2022-09-08T18:46:00-04:00

The latest Dodge Momentum Index report from the Dodge Construction Network shows a slight drop of 1.2% from July’s revised record peak of 174.0, driven by declines in the institutional sector that were spurred on primarily by a decrease in healthcare projects when compared to last month.

Overall, the Index is up a dramatic 14% when compared to last August’s totals, with an additional 16% increase in the commercial component and 10% rise in the institutional sector being recorded year-over-year.

Graphic: Dodge Construction Network

The Index recorded a total of 26 projects numbering $100 million or more, led by Juan Gabriel Moreno Architects/HOK’s $400 million office towers project in the West Loop of Chicago, the forthcoming $300 million Sungate Logistics Park in Florida, and $360 million Scripps Mercy Hospital expansion in San Diego.

Previously on Archinect: Construction starts skyrocketed in July, driven by nonresidential and nonbuilding projects

“In spite of weak institutional plann...

Dodge Momentum Index builds on 14-year high with slight jump in July figures

2022-08-08T10:00:00-04:00

The Dodge Momentum Index hit a 14-year high in June and recorded another 2.9% increase in July. The index now stands at 178.7, up from June’s figure of 173.6.

“Commercial planning in July was led by an increase in data center, office and warehouse projects, while fewer education and healthcare projects drove the institutional component lower,” the latest report reads. “Compared to July 2021, the Momentum Index was 8%. The commercial component was 15% higher, while the institutional component was 3% lower than a year ago.”

Graphic: Dodge Construction Network

The index mentioned 14 projects carrying values of $100 million or more being recorded in July. Among them, new projects in Sacramento, Miami, and suburban D.C. were the biggest commercial heavy hitters. Three institutional projects, including Blair + Mui Dowd’s $500 million Vanderbilt University Medical Center expansion, also topped the $100 million threshold.

Dodge Construction Network has said it will watch closely to see if t...

Dodge Momentum Index rises an additional 7% in May, indicating secure construction sector amidst uncertain economy

2022-06-08T15:11:00-04:00

The Dodge Momentum Index rose 7% in May to 176.2, up from the revised April reading of 165.2. The institutional component of the Index rose 9% and commercial planning rose 6%.

May’s increase pushed the level of planning above the most recent cyclical high set in November 2021. Last month, commercial planning was led by an increase in office and hotel projects. Institutional developments were driven by an increase in education and healthcare projects entering planning. The Index is 17% higher in May 2022 compared to the same period in 2021, with commercial planning up 24% and institutional planning 8% higher than a year ago.

A total of 19 projects with a value of $100 million or more entered planning in May. The leading commercial projects were the $333 million Bitcoin Mining Facility in Corsicana, Texas and the $300 million Gun Lake Hotel and Resort in Wayland, Michigan. The leading institutional projects were the $250 million Drexel University life sciences building in Philadelphi...

Dodge Momentum Index continues upward trend with 6% increase of nonresidential projects in planning in April

2022-05-06T16:51:00-04:00

The Dodge Momentum Index continues to rise, with a 6% increase in April, taking it to 164.8, up from the revised March reading of 155. Commercial planning rose 9%, while institutional planning moved 2% higher.

This gain in April has moved the Dodge Momentum Index just 5% short of the all-time high set in the fall of 2021. The main driver has been the commercial sector, which has been carried by a growing number of data center, warehouse, and hotel projects in planning. The gain in institutional planning is due to an increase in education, healthcare, and recreation projects. Compared to April 2021, the index is 17% higher in April 2022, with commercial planning up 15% and institutional planning 22% higher.

25 projects with a value of $100 million or more entered planning in April. The leading commercial projects were the $208 million Colo 1 data center in Ashburn, Virginia and the $150 million QTS data center in Fort Worth, Texas. The leading institutional projects were the $300 mi...

Dodge Momentum Index yields another 4% increase in March

2022-04-08T13:43:00-04:00

The Dodge Momentum Index moved up another 4% in March to 166.9 from the revised February reading of 160.3. Last month, commercial planning rose 7%, while institutional planning fell by less than one percent.

Commercial planning in March was just slightly lower than the all-time high set in October 2021. However, this component of the Momentum Index has been much more volatile than institutional planning due to the presence or absence of large projects month-to-month. Compared to March 2021, the overall index was 17% higher in March 2022, with institutional planning up 23% over the year and commercial planning up 14%.

Previously on Archinect: Dodge Momentum Index recovers in February following 3-month stretch of decline

A total of 21 projects with a value of $100 million or more entered planning in March. The leading commercial projects were the $923 million third phase of the Atlas Power data center in Williston, North Dakota, and the $325 million Seaport San Diego Block F in San Di...

Dodge Momentum Index recovers in February following 3-month stretch of decline

2022-03-08T15:37:00-05:00

In February, the Dodge Momentum Index increased 4% to 158.2 from the revised January reading of 151.9, marking a rebound from three consecutive monthly declines that followed a 14-year high in October 2021. Last month, institutional planning rose 9% and commercial planning moved 1% higher.

The Dodge Construction Network attributes much of February’s gain to the sizable jump in the institutional sectors, in which more education and healthcare projects entered planning. Gains in commercial planning are due to office and warehouse projects. Compared to February 2021, the overall Momentum Index was 11% higher during the same time this year. Institutional planning was up 37%, while commercial planning was down 1% on a year-over-year basis.

Previously on Archinect: Dodge Momentum Index continues to fall into January

A total of 22 projects with a value of $100 million or more entered planning in February. The leading institutional projects were a $500 million first phase of the OC Vibe rec...

Nationwide construction starts increased in January despite labor shortages and soaring costs

2022-02-22T14:10:00-05:00

2022 is speeding along, and with March quickly approaching, this means another Dodge Construction Network report has been released. In January, total construction starts increased 4% to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of $923.4 billion. Nonresidential building starts increased 4% and nonbuilding starts rose 18%, with residential starts falling 1%.

Compared to this time last year, total construction is 8% higher in January 2022 than in January 2021. Nonresidential building starts are up 14%, nonbuilding starts rose 12%, and residential starts gained 2%. For the 12 months ending January 2022, total construction starts were 13% above the 12 months ending January 2021. Nonresidential starts were 14% higher, residential starts increased 19%, and nonbuilding starts went up 3%.

Graphic courtesy of Dodge Construction Network

“Construction starts continue to climb, mostly unimpeded by rising materials prices and shortages of labor and key materials,” stated Richard Branch, chief economist ...

Dodge Momentum Index continues to fall into January

2022-02-14T13:15:00-05:00

The Dodge Momentum Index has continued to fall in January, yielding a 7% decline to a four-month low of 152.9 from the revised December reading of 163.7. Commercial planning fell 9% and institutional planning fell 1%.

Previously on Archinect: Dodge Momentum Index declines in November, remains near 14-year high

Last year, the Dodge Momentum Index reached levels not seen in nearly 14 years, rising 21% from 2020. The recent stretch of declines has been attributed to rising costs, logistical problems, and skilled labor shortages. However, despite this decrease, the dollar value of projects in planning remains strong, especially for education, warehouse, and healthcare projects.

January 2022 Dodge Momentum Index. Graphic: Dodge Construction Network

A total of 13 projects with a value of $100 million or more entered planning in January. The leading institutional projects were a $400 million hospital in Tahlequah, Oklahoma and the $320 million Ascension Seton Medical Tower in Austin, Texas....

Form followed finance in 2021, for better and for worse

2021-12-25T09:00:00-05:00

2021 was a year where form continued to follow finance. Throughout the year, our coverage included many examples of the world’s largest architecture firms designing for some of the world’s largest companies. From sleek corporate headquarters to “work-and-play” tech campuses, such projects take on an added significance when searching for clues on the future of work and offices post-pandemic.

However, as we followed the money this year, we also took time to reflect on what lies in its wake. What are the social ramifications of large tech companies landing space-age campuses on areas already creaking from a lack of affordable housing? What does the growing proliferation of Amazon fulfillment centers mean for traditional retail typologies? What are the human consequences of placing the governance of civic space in private hands?

To further explore this point, we have rounded up the highlights of our 2021 coverage on the intersection between architecture and corporatism — for better and...

Dodge Momentum Index declines in November, remains near 14-year high

2021-12-10T13:53:00-05:00

The latest edition of the Dodge Momentum Index indicates a 4% decrease in November from October. Commercial planning fell 8% while institutional planning moved 5% higher.

The value of nonresidential building projects continues to move in a sawtooth pattern, in which month-by-month measures alternate between gains and losses. Despite this, the Momentum Index remains near a 14-year high. As reported in Dodge Construction Network’s newest release, the index was 44% higher in November 2021 compared to November 2020. In addition, the commercial planning component was 45% higher and institutional planning was 41% higher.

Previously on Archinect: Non-residential projects in planning are at a 14-year high, according to new analysis

Since the start of the pandemic, nonresidential building projects entering planning have been more volatile, which is likely due to higher prices and shortage of labor.

A total of 10 projects with a value of $100 million or more entered planning in November. Th...

Non-residential projects in planning are at a 14-year high, according to new analysis

2021-11-08T11:50:00-05:00

Non-residential building projects entering planning stage across the United States are showing strong signs of recovery, according to data from Dodge Construction Network. The latest iteration of the Dodge Momentum Index notes a 10% increase in non-residential building projects in planning through October 2021, breaking down into a 14% rise in commercial project planning, and a 3% rise in institutional project planning.

Following poor levels of activity throughout the summer of 2021, the value of non-residential building projects entering planning stage has now surged to the highest level in 14 years in the Dodge Momentum Index. The index is now 47% higher than this time last year, with commercial planning sitting 59% higher, and institutional planning 26% higher. Dodge believes the increases are being driven by higher planning activity for warehouses, offices, and healthcare structures.

Non-residential projects in planning are at their highest point in nearly 14 years on the Dod...

Should shuttered office buildings be converted to housing?

2020-07-24T14:20:00-04:00

As commercial and office real estate markets continue to be upended by societal shifts touched off by the COVID-19 pandemic, some economists are looking to these now under-utilized spaces as potential avenues for bringing additional housing supplies online in American cities.

Previously on Archinect: "Non-residential construction expected to decline through at least 2021." Photo by Quang Nguyen Vinh from Pexels.

A recent report from nonprofit think tank RAND Corporation explains that 40% of respondents to a recent survey by the firm indicated that they are working from home, a figure that paints an uncertain picture for the millions of square feet of office spaces these workers are no longer utilizing. The report explains that many office spaces are grouped in specialized central business districts, where they draw from regional populations in order to fill their cubicles and open offices areas. With the massive shift in how and where people work currently underway, the RAND associa...

Will coronavirus make transit-oriented development a thing of the past?

2020-05-08T12:32:00-04:00

“This is an opportunity to think in new ways, but people will still want to live close to transit,” [Dr. Richard J. Jackson] said. The challenge for developers will be marrying density with safety, which will now require an interdisciplinary approach [...]

The New York Times takes a look at the potential impact the coronavirus pandemic could have on the future of transit-oriented development in the United States. Transit use has fallen drastically during the lockdown period, while many high-profile figures, including New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, have spoken out against urban density in response to the pandemic.These trends are converging to potentially make TOD projects less desirable in the future.

Dr. Jackson tells The New York Times, "The era of a single architect designing buildings is over, he said, and transit-oriented development will need to bring in the best minds from design, health and transit to come up with living spaces that are conducive to community but also the well-being of residents."

OMA to design Wollert Neighborhood Center in Australian suburb near Melbourne

2020-03-23T16:10:00-04:00

OMA was commissioned by Australian retail developer Sandhurst Retail to design the mixed-use Wollert Neighborhood Center in the suburb of Wollert, which is about 25 kilometers (about 15.5 miles) north of Melbourne's Central Business District and is one of the fastest growing regions in the state of Victoria. So far, the practice has released only a few renderings of their scheme.

Concept. Image courtesy of OMA.

The 9,000m2 Center will combine retail and community spaces. A shaded courtyard with an amphitheater will be used for curated community events and daily activities, while the accessible roof makes room for sports, education, and potential urban agriculture and energy-saving initiatives.

Image courtesy of OMA.

Amenity spaces, childcare facilities, and wellness-focused retail spaces are spatially organized into vertical “stripes”. Along with the courtyard's landscape design, this spatial configuration was inspired by the product barcodes used throughout the...

Delivery-only "ghost kitchens" could reshape the restaurant industry

2019-09-26T16:00:00-04:00

As more people order food to eat at home, and as delivery becomes faster and more convenient, the apps are changing the very essence of what it means to operate a restaurant. No longer must restaurateurs rent space for a dining room. All they need is a kitchen — or even just part of one.

Food delivery apps like Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Grubhub are reshaping the $863 billion restaurant industry in the United States, according to The New York Times, as delivery-only "virtual restaurants" take off.

The New York Times reports that over 4,000 virtual restaurants and "ghost kitchens" have sprung up across the country since 2017.

Don't believe the hype: Brick-and-mortar retail is here to stay

2019-09-24T19:30:00-04:00

The hypothetical Retail Apocalypse should be supported by a decline in the total retail establishments, but that's not the case. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported 1,044,509 establishments for 2018, for a net gain of 2,413 establishments over 2017 (1,042,096). The 2018 figure also represents a net gain of more than 20,800 establishments since a retail trough in 2011, a low point resulting from the Great Recession.

Sharon Woods, CEO of real estate consultant group LandUseUSA, writes in Public Square, a journal produced by the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) presents an opposing, data-driven view of the future of America's retail landscape.

Woods writes, "The future for brick-and-mortar retail is far less bleak than the scene painted by mainstream media. Although e-commerce is taking a larger share of the pie, brick-n-mortar and physical store sales are also continuing to grow. Most of the chain store closures are limited to certain segments of retail—particularly department stores anchors and apparel tenants of sprawling regional malls and strip centers."

As the chart above notes, much of the retail growth is taking place in chain restaurants, CVS HealthHUB stores, and dollar stores like Dollar Tree and Dollar General.

Commercial real estate is in trouble around the world

2019-09-19T19:59:00-04:00

Commercial-property prices in major cities around the world tumbled in the second quarter, amid signs of slower global growth and heightened trade tension between China and the U.S. Average property prices fell in the second quarter from the first quarter in Hong Kong and Seoul to London and Washington, D.C., according to data from Real Capital Analytics.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Melbourne, central Sydney, Seoul, Singapore, Paris, London, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. all saw a retreat in commercial real estate property values during the second quarter of 2019. The trend applies to struggling sectors like office buildings and malls.

Is the "retail apocalypse" overblown?

2019-08-13T14:00:00-04:00

The Department of City Planning studied commercial corridors in 24 neighborhoods across the five boroughs and concluded that while shuttered storefronts plague some of the city's richest and poorest areas, the phenomenon is far from a pandemic. "There is no single dominant trend in retail in New York City," the survey asserts. "Data did not indicate a pervasive vacancy problem across the city, but did identify a number of high-vacancy corridors."

Meet Tanya Ragan, the female real estate developer taking Dallas by storm

2019-07-15T16:50:00-04:00

Her newly resurrected 114-year-old Purse Building features a floor-to ceiling mural of the late Jacobs, an urbanist activist and author of The Death and Life of Great American Cities, superimposed on a downtown street grid. Above Jacobs’ striking bespectacled image, her mantra “New ideas need old buildings” blazes in neon lights.

The Dallas Morning News profiles Tanya Ragan, a Dallas-based real estate developer who is taking on commercial real estate's "boys club" mentality with a Jane Jacobs-inspired approach.

Ragan's Wildcat Management is behind a series of new and forthcoming projects, including the redevelopment of the Liberty State Bank Building, the Purse Building, and others, that aim to repurpose historic buildings in the city's downtown.

Ragan was recently listed among other influential developers by The Business Journals network.

Regarding the difficulty of developing real estate projects as woman in Texas, Kourtny Garrett, CEO of Downtown Dallas Inc., a non-profit development advocate in the city, told The Dallas Morning News, “It’s an uphill climb and you have to be smart and you have to be patient—Tanya would laugh if she heard me call her patient because she knows she’s sometimes not—but in terms of understanding how market cycles go, you have to be willing to hit the pavement every single da...

First glimpse: Steven Holl Architects to design geometric, mixed-use complex in Beijing

2018-10-25T18:53:00-04:00

Steven Holl Architects gave a first glimpse into their second mixed-use project in Beijing. At 26,000m2, the geometric building will accommodate office and retail spaces in the city's Fengtai district.

Courtesy of Steven Holl Architects.

SHA's main elements in their design were light, structure, open offices, urban porosity, and gardens/ecology. In response to code setback requirements, the project's north facade has distinctive curves slopes that create varying qualities of diffused natural light throughout the interior. On the south facade, sculpted cuts allow light into the office and retail spaces below ground level. The aluminum-painted concrete will be OSB formed, while the curves will have a smooth matte finish.

Office view. Courtesy of Steven Holl Architects.

Courtesy of Steven Holl Architects.

“The structure consists of four layers: a glass exterior laid over truss, secondary tubes, and an interior layer of translucent barrisol or newmat,” SHA says. The exterior concrete stru...

M-Rad designs elite cannabis industry members club in Downtown Los Angeles

2018-10-09T20:57:00-04:00

At a time when the cannabis industry is growing its commercial presence in Los Angeles, a new private members club for industry elites is setting up shop at 718 South Hill Street, in the heart of Downtown L.A.'s Jewelry District. Local architecture firm M-Rad was put in charge of redesigning the 85-foot-tall building, which will retain its historic characteristics and feature over 67,000 square feet of carefully curated space across seven distinct floors.

Green Street Agency, an L.A.-based creative agency that exclusively works within the cannabis industry, will be the flag tenant. Supporting tenants including Timeless Vapes, MOTA, and Vicente Sederberg will occupy three floors.

Rendering of the third floor, 718 South Hill. Courtesy of M-Rad.

Bird's eye view of the third floor. Courtesy of M-Rad.

The building will serve as a professional and community hub for entrepreneurs dedicated to “advancing the cannabis space”, giving members access to four levels of communal and private offi...

Architecture critic Mark Lamster on the manipulative design of CVS Pharmacy stores

2018-07-12T15:21:00-04:00

[T]hough in practice CVS is context agnostic: A CVS looks like a CVS no matter where it is. It is a structure without character or distinction, and to walk along such a building is an unpleasant experience that degrades pedestrian life, the civic space and all the other properties around it.

Architecture critic Mark Lamster of The Dallas Morning News gives his two cents on why CVS Pharmacy, America's largest pharmacy chain, should rethink the “manipulative designs” of their retail stores, describing it as a case of “urban malpractice by chain retailers”.

“As a CVS customer, I would like to see the company do a better job of embracing the city on which it depends [...],” Lamster writes in the piece. “In areas where there is a growing pedestrianism, where the city is discovering a new walkability, it needs to rethink its designs.”