Rachel Michelin AIA’s Post

Have you noticed any interesting #architectural features on your #tenement building or those nearby? Some traditional tenements in #Scotland have unique features that can only be spotted when we look up. These features might include ornate stone frontage, such as parapets, moulded cornices, architraves, or window canopy details. Some tenement buildings may also have intricate detailings along the external stone walls, where one floor meets the other. The next time you're out walking in your local area, and you pass a traditional tenement, notice the unique architecture of the building. What can you see? For information on caring for external stone wall features check out this page on our website➡️ https://ow.ly/sy3M50QaVgs Learn more about the features you might be able to spot in this blog post from Historic Environment Scotland⬇️ https://ow.ly/FrfL50QaVgt

We’re excited to announce that 8001 Woodmont Avenue has been recognized by Maryland Chapter ASLA with an Honor Award in the Residential Design – Multi-Family category! 8001 Woodmont, a mixed-use high-density residential development, is situated between two prominent commercial corridors in the heart of Bethesda, MD. As part of an existing “super block” lacking adequate pedestrian connections, the team’s design approach proposed to “break the block” by inserting a new human-scaled plaza through the building, improving connectivity between the adjacent Corridors, and providing much-needed open space for the public. The ground level is organized around a block-long public plaza, which extends through a 35’ tall portal in the building. Pyramidal landforms, interwoven with pathways, imbue the plaza with an unmistakable character while providing opportunities for recreation. A tessellated public art element adorns the portal’s ceiling. Running along one side, a large stormwater planter treats rainwater from the roof of the building. This planter contains an enriched biofiltration soil that supports diverse plantings, making 8001 Woodmont one of the first designed in the county to use this technology. Throughout the building, a series of distinctive terraces provide opportunities for residents to engage with the outdoors: a south-facing Pool Terrace, a lushly-planted Garden Terrace space with facilities for gathering, and the Entertainment Terrace with vistas across the city. Kebony and native plantings add visual warmth while contributing to a sustainably-focused material palette. Client: JBG SMITH Design & Construction Team: FXFOWLE VIKA Companies, LLC Plaza Construction Xibei Song Tim Bragan Joseph Chambers, ASLA, PLA, SITES AP #MKSK #ShapePlace #PlacesforPeople #LandscapeArchitecture #UrbanDesign #Design #ASLA #MDASLA #Award #Bethesda #PublicSpace #PublicArt #Sustainability

Balconies often compromise the design of mass timber buildings due to water leakage risk into CLT floor slabs, and significant costs, but are they worth it for occupant wellbeing? 👇 Share your thoughts below 👇 #masstimber #masstimberconstruction #sustainabledesign #wellbeing #healthandwellness #naturalventilation #wellcertified

An interesting post from Oliver David Krieg on the need to develop retrofitted balconies for #masstimber builds. This 25-storey tower in Vancouver has only a concrete core, so the architects were not willing to add balconies due to the risk of water ingress to the #clt floorplates. After a lengthy debate with regulators the requirement was waived for this building only, as it is a prototype of sorts. In addition to cost, balconies are a challenge for #facadeengineering due to thermal bridging and breaching of the weather line. However, with untised curtain walling #facades there are reliable ways to solve this, so we are sure to see innovative solutions in future. In total, there will be 210 secured purpose-built rental homes, including 168 market units and 42 below-market units. The overall unit size mix is 53 studios, 84 one-bedroom units, 53 two-bedroom units, and 20 three-bedroom units. Thanks Oliver David Krieg.

Jersey City Approves High Rise at 829 Bergen Avenue A narrow lot in Journal Square that has been home to a vacant building for many years is slated to be revitalized into a new rental complex that will add even more residents to a growing Jersey City neighborhood. The parcel is a narrow lot spanning about 6,800 square feet next to the St. George and St. Shenouda Coptic Orthodox Church. The two-story brick building at the land dates to 1940 and was once home to the Samuel Reynolds Glass Co. despite remaining empty in recent times. Drawn up by Hoboken-based MVMK Architecture Design, the approved plan calls for the complete demolition of the current structures to be replaced with an 11-story building that will rise 122 feet at the tallest point. The structure will be decidedly modern compared to its surroundings, sporting a tiered design that allows outdoor balcony spaces on select apartments. A total of 77 units will be built within the complex, breaking down as 30 studios, 27 one-bedrooms, 19 two-bedroom units, and a single three-bedroom space. Four of the apartments, or 5% of the total, will be set aside as affordable housing. A resident lounge is included on the first floor of the development, while the top of the structure will feature a 1,500 square foot common roof deck. #jerseycity #realestate #journalsquare #bergen #housing

The city of Vancouver approved a 25-storey mass timber building today. This is exciting news, but not for the reason you might think. The biggest discussion around the approval seems to have been about balconies: "Gregory Henriquez of Henriquez Partners Architects made a plea to City Council asking for an exemption from the balcony requirement, asserting that providing private balconies would compromise the design of the building due to water leakage risk into the CLT floor slabs and the significant costs." Two things are important to note here: ⛅ I welcome this exception for the sake of innovation. But I think we all agree that this should not be a precedent for all future mass timber buildings. Balconies are important to users (I certainly want one) and balcony systems should be developed for, and included in, most, if not all, mass timber buildings in the future. 🌧 We have to rethink balconies in North America. It is inconceivable to me that we are still building "radiator style" buildings where the concrete slabs simply protrude from the inside of the building to the outside. These massive thermal bridges are bad for concrete already, but they're impossible for mass timber. As we increase energy and quality requirements in buildings, these forms of balconies will disappear anyway. As we step into this future, we need to find a better balance between balcony requirements and systems that are available for energy-efficient buildings. https://lnkd.in/ggfURYN6 #masstimber #balconies #prefab #housing

Downtown Hamilton is experiencing a surge in high-rise intensification proposals, with many new developments promising to transform the city at the west end of Lake Ontario. One of the more recent examples is a Site Plan Approval application for a 30-storey mixed-use building at 46 and 48 Ferguson Avenue South. Located in Hamilton's Corktown neighbourhood to the immediate east of the core, the site is strategically positioned within 500m of the Hamilton GO Centre to the west and within walking distance of two stops on the future Hamilton LRT, reported UrbanToronto.ca. "An assembly of 46 and 48 Ferguson Avenue South and 165 through 173 Jackson Street East, the site is a 2,300m² in area, a rectangular parcel surrounded by a mix of commercial, office, residential, and mixed-use properties. The property is currently partially vacant, containing two existing buildings, including the heritage Radigan Building constructed around 1905. As part of the development, the Radigan Building is proposed to be demolished, but its north and east facades would be rebuilt in line with heritage preservation recommendations." "The proposed development, designed by Graziani Corazza Architects Inc. for The Hi-Rise Group in collaboration with Fengate Properties, is slated to stand at a height of approximately 97.8m. The building is set to include 402 residential units. The tower is planned to sit atop a three-storey podium, which would house parking, retail, and office spaces, as well as amenity areas. The design incorporates a 13-storey portion with step-backs on the 7th and 13th floors to add architectural interest and mitigate the building's impact on its neighbours." https://lnkd.in/gWj8zuAk #hamilton #residential #development #mixeduse #commercial

Rendering to Reality: LCD Parcel, Lowell Location: Lowell, Massachusetts Developer: WinnCompanies Architect: ICON Architecture General Contractor: Keith Construction Inc. Number of Units:125 The four-story development, located in Lowell’s Hamilton Canal Innovation District, is an architectural and cultural reflection of a neighborhood that used to be a booming manufacturing hub run by the largest power canal system in the country. 201 Canal features one steel-framed level with a brick veneer façade and three wood-framed stories with alternating wood and stone textures and colors for visual interest and a nod to the area’s rich history. The historic brick seawall was retained to enclose a lower-level courtyard. Additional design elements include weathered-brick accent walls, hewn granite pavers, preserved steel wall bracing, and the city’s only open-air roof deck, which boasts panoramic canal vistas and overlooks the new Signature Bridge across the Pawtucket Canal. The complexity of construction, logistics and preservation efforts is evident as Bridgeline Exteriors worked tirelessly with Keith Construction to preserve the original history of the Canal and District but give it the much-needed residential housing it needed. WinnDevelopment created 125 homes, including 54 workforce apartments for residents earning between 60% and 120% of the area median income (AMI) and 32 market-rate units. The community also provides affordable housing opportunities with a mix of 11 units restricted to households earning up to 30% of the AMI and supported by project-based housing vouchers; 15 apartments for households earning up to 50% of the AMI; and 13 apartments for households earning up to 60% of the AMI. This development not only looked to make affordability it's top priority. Winn Development creates with the intention to build it's communities and it was our honor to share this journey with them and all involved. Bridgeline Builds Communities, One Project at a Time Congratulations on this momentous occasion! Discover more of our thrilling projects! Check out our website: https://lnkd.in/eVW4qiDJ #Renderingtoreality #Buildwithbridgeline #Rendering #Lowell #BridgelineExteriors #Historicpreservation

RESIDENCE AT HARVARD DRIVE Located in the heart of a midcentury residential neighborhood in south central Wisconsin, this newly constructed home blends modern design and nature to create a beautifully blended living space. With over 40’ of grade change and a key drainage corridor flowing through the site, design and construction presented many challenges. The Envirolok system was incorporated into three separate landscape areas to soften the aesthetic and accommodate the grade changes. These areas included a transitional border along the property line, borders to an outdoor living space and screening of the rainwater cistern. To accommodate garage access at street level, a series of retaining walls were incorporated along the driveway edge and garage entry. The bottom tiers of the wall were constructed of a cast concrete wall, veneered with Corten steel to complement the house façade. Envirolok was then incorporated as the final grade transition to the neighboring properties above. Due to the challenging access and limited space for construction, Envirolok was the ideal solution for reinforcement of the 6’-8’ tall slope. By incorporating a mix of geogrid and earth anchors, excavation and fill material was minimal. To the east, grades begin to transition to a neighborhood stormwater feature on the lowest edge of the lot. Envirolok was again incorporated to help fill a 5’-6’ grade change between the outdoor living area and access path to the side entry of the house. The near vertical green wall feature softens the building façade and hardscape with vegetative features. The third Envirolok structure is a green retaining wall application that retains soil around a large-scale rainwater cistern. With accessibility and limited space, this wall is nearly vertical and is highly visible from the public street and backyard deck. To complete the vegetation, a mix of sedum mat varieties were planted over the Envirolok system. This approach provided the owner with the clean modern aesthetic they desired. As a semi-green, alpine groundcover, sedum can grow on more vertical surfaces and thrive without intensive irrigation and care. The vegetative mats included species mixes for both the sunny and shady site locations and included three varieties native to the Midwest. https://lnkd.in/eMiNa6Qq #streambankstabalization #stormwater #landscapearchitecture #civilengineering #livingshoreline

Transforming hardscapes into greenspaces! MKSK celebrates World Landscape Architecture Month with a glimpse into our before-and-after projects. Our projects include the reimagination of former malls, industrial sites, brownfields, parking lots, riverfronts, and more, into vibrant centers of destination for urban life. The urban heat island effect has a significant impact on the environment of our cities. Communities can take action to reduce urban heat islands with strategies like increasing tree and vegetative cover, installing green roofs, using cool pavements, and utilizing smart growth practices. For each project site, we strive to achieve low-impact site development utilizing these strategies. These are the projects MKSK designs. Featured Projects: Bridge Park District & Riverside Crossing Park, Dublin, OH - The project transformed a former strip retail center, downtown riverfront, and the surrounding roadways into a walkable destination for visitors and residents to the Bridge Street District with the mixed-use development Bridge Park, a walkable tree-lined boulevard along the re-aligned Riverside Drive, and a new Riverside Crossing Park supported by gained open space introduced by the realignment of Riverside Drive.   Dorrian Green, Columbus, OH - 6.5 acres of surface parking was transformed into the surrounding neighborhood’s ‘central park’. The park is a green roof above a new 630-car below ground parking garage serving visitors to the Scioto Peninsula Cultural District, Center of Science and Industry, and National Veterans Memorial and Museum. Lawrenceburg Civic Park, Lawrenceburg, IN - Replaces over an acre of underutilized surface parking located in the heart of downtown to create a signature central greenspace, park, and entertainment destination, and the catalyst for a new downtown entertainment district. Centennial Commons, Royal Oak, MI - The relocation of downtown Royal Oak’s Police Station and City Hall resulted in the perfect opportunity to provide an inclusive outdoor amenity and experience space for the community. The greenspace provides a “world class” resilient landscape for community events and is sized for the City’s annual winter ice rink. Crisscrossing pathways promote porous edges for convenient access to the park, connecting the entire district with the community. American Society of Landscape Architects City of Dublin, Ohio USA Columbus Recreation and Parks Department City of Lawrenceburg, Indiana City of Royal Oak, MI #MKSK #ShapePlace #PlacesforPeople #LandscapeArchitecture #UrbanDesign #Planning #Design #EnvironmentalImpact #ResilientDesign #Greenspace #ASLA #OCASLA #INASLA #MiASLA #ULI #WLAM #WLAM2024 #ThisIsLandscapeArchitecture #April #BeforeandAfter