This redesign initiated a great partnership with Custom Metal Fabrication (CMF), the fabricator, and created an opportunity to introduce warm materials that better negotiated the transition from the lobby above to the intimate amenity space below. The design-assist relationship with CMF produced a highly efficient stair design of exceptionally high quality, which maintained the original design intention while meeting the budget. The new stair design was innovative and elegant: two unfolding steel stringers acted as structure, hugging the treads in a tight curvature which allowed for no intermediate supports between the two floors.

Brace + post framing spanning from level to level was concealed by the painted steel stringers, and both handrail and guardrail were integrated into the steel stringer support design. American oak treads and custom lighting completed the detailing. All of the curved metal pieces were bent at CMF’s facility and sized to fit through the lobby’s front swing doors where they were lowered through a reinforced circular floor opening and welded in place. Ultimately, this grand and elegant staircase achieved a design sophistication beyond expectation through intricate detailing and collaboration.

The honest “unwrapping” of its form expresses the structural clarity of the simple modern aesthetic, while the careful material selection bridges the transition from public main entry to private and secluded amenity.