Jeff’s Bike Shop
Having grown out of his too-small bike sales and repair shop, this professional cyclist and entrepreneur worked out a land swap when approached by a developer to build the bike shop he always wanted. Giving his corner location for a new convenience food/gas store, he retained a one-third acre interior portion for the new bike shop building and parking. The developer, city planner, architect, and bike shop owner all worked together to locate the two new buildings on the street edges with parking between. The shared vehicle access and parking met both business’s needs.
The development agreement only allowed $75 per square foot to build the bike shop, yet the owner only required a “garage environment” with good light, heat, and air. The architect resolved to work within a basic rectangular building form and a simple palette of materials to answer the budget challenge without sacrificing quality design.
St. Joseph Catholic
A new elementary and middle school became a necessity for this parochial school after enrollment exceeded available space on their campus. The Church acquired a 200 x 140 ft site adjacent to their existing campus in downtown Huntington and commissioned our firm to design a new building that would accommodate grades K – 8 with two classrooms per grade.
The 39,000 sf facility’s classrooms are organized on 4 levels with younger students at grade and older students on upper floors. Both stair towers are faced in curtain wall glazing to flood these spaces with daylight and provide views both into and out of the stairways. State of the art computer and science labs along with music, art, and administrative offices are provided with ample access to daylight as well.
The structural system consists of locally-made, integrally-colored, load bearing concrete masonry and steel. Building cost constraints were balanced with durable construction systems to ensure a sustainable structure that will allow efficient continued operation for future generations. The project was completed in 2009.