Rather than add to the historic building, the design team deconstructed the adjacent parking garage to create a vibrant outdoor courtyard. The historic façade of the former garage was preserved and reinforced to maintain the urban scale and streetscape. In place of the former garage doors, a new pedestrian gate welcomes employees and visitors into the shaded urban respite. The courtyard is now an extension of the office and serves as a natural backdrop for a variety of work, community, and social collaborations.

The workspaces that take up the remainder of the three floors are an exercise in restraint, preserving and showing off the buildings robust and rhythmic concrete structure and introducing an elemental pallet of wood, steel, and glass. They are designed to respond to the dynamic and evolving needs of contemporary offices through a broad set of spatial typologies.

Informed by lessons learned during the pandemic and the firm’s continually evolving research on workplace design and social inclusion, the building is pursuing International Living Future Institute (ILFI) Zero Carbon building certification as well as WELL certification that not only set clear performance goals, but will also ensure actual performance data collection and iteration through post-occupancy testing. In its first year of operation, the building offset energy use by 60% through an off-site solar array.

In addition, there was an overall 88% reduction in embodied carbon emissions through reusing materials (including the reclaimed wood from the garage) and selecting low-carbon products. 75% of regularly occupied spaces achieve high quality daylight, creating dynamic and healthy workplaces that promote health and wellbeing.