Archinect - News

Gensler and CIVILIAN team reimagines abandoned Detroit book depository as startup hub for mobility innovation

2023-04-28T11:55:00-04:00

A team including Gensler and CIVILIAN has completed the adaptive reuse of an old book depository in Detroit. The new center will serve as the headquarters for Newlab, a technology collective hosting startups in the field of decarbonization, energy, mobility, and materials.

Image credit: Jason Keen

Newlab’s headquarters sits within the wider Michigan Central campus; a 30-acre center advancing mobility-focused technologies and the vision of Ford executive chairman Bill Ford. On the campus, Newlab will create what the organization calls a “center of gravity for startups, entrepreneurs, engineers, and scientists to build breakthrough companies in Detroit.”

Image credit: Jason Keen

Image credit: Brian Ferry

The 1936 Albert Kahn-designed building housing Newlab was originally built as a post office and mail-sorting facility, before being used as the Detroit Public School’s Book Depository. The art deco building will now serve as a 270,000-square-foot center with purpos...

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...

New Design District Announced for Greenwich Peninsula

2017-09-28T13:45:00-04:00

Today, Knight Dragon, the developers delivering London’s largest single regeneration project, Greenwich Peninsula, have announced a new one-hectare district which will be the first purpose-built district for creatives. The Design District is the next phase in Knight Dragon’s 20-year, £8.4billion plan for the area, and promises to bring culture and community to the area with a central public realm.

Image: Knight Dragon

Open workshops and studios surround courtyards in this new creative hub formed of 16 buildings, to be situated in the heart of Greenwich Peninsula, for the use of over 1800 people. The project, designed by 8 practices, is from the outset a diverse project; each of the human-scaled workplaces were designed without conference between the practices. The result is a huge variety in form, colour, and style, with excellent transport links, thanks to the proposed new £1million tube station.

Image: Knight Dragon

Affordability is at the heart of this scheme, with prices start...

Brutalist block repurposed for 21st century Royal Docks workspaces

2017-09-01T01:29:00-04:00

A former beer factory in the Royal Docks is set to become London’s newest creative workspace hub, which will open later this year. The Silver Building, from SODA and Nick Hartwright, will be one of the first elements of the Royal Docks’ regeneration, which will continue throughout the next 15 years.

Brutalism is quickly becoming one of London's most celebrated styles, with the love for these post-war concrete structures growing over recent years. This project will build on the city’s hunger for not only iconic modernist buildings, but for creative spaces.

Photo Credit: Agnese Sanvito, Luke O’Donovan

The project bears the hallmarks of most regeneration hubs in London, providing cafes, galleries, function rooms, breakout spaces, studios, and workshops. The importance of these community-friendly creative hubs within London cannot be ignored; this project is a great solution to the scarcity of available workspaces for start-ups and small businesses in the city. With 50,000 square-foot...

London's Walthamstow Central Parade converted into a creative hub by Gort Scott

2016-08-26T11:18:00-04:00

Gort Scott Architects has transformed London’s Walthamstow Central Parade into a bustling social enterprise hub. The 1960s former council building now accommodates up to 50 independent makers and creative businesses, as well as providing an exhibition and flexible event space, which is open to the public.