CORE spearheaded a full historic building renovation and expansion for Arizona State University in Washington, DC. The 8-story, 32,000 SF building enables the university to consolidate its DC office, teaching, and event spaces.
The historic structure at 1800 Eye Street NW, which Arizona State University chose as its new home, was purportedly the first concrete and masonry residential building in DC. A major goal of the redevelopment was to maximize the building’s footprint, which posed several significant challenges. Large, bearing-masonry chimneys, that could not be removed without major structural work, took up valuable interior square footage, while a back courtyard further reduced the usable space on the small lot. The lower floors were at split-levels from the exterior sidewalk grade, impeding building accessibility. With approval by the Board of Zoning Adjustments to increase the FAR, the courtyard was in-filled for 100 percent lot use. By underpinning and excavating a new basement, the expanded design added roughly 3,600 SF of new space, allowing for necessary building utility and storage spaces. The ground floor was reconstructed to level with the sidewalk grade, while the remaining FAR square footage was used as a new story on the roof.
Article source: Best Practice Architecture & Design
Across the country, many families are struggling with the same difficult question: How can you best support aging family members when you live in a city with minimal housing options? Best Practice Architecture has offered a brilliant solution to issues around multigenerational living and urban density with their latest Seattle project.
The firm was hired by a Seattle homeowner to create Granny Pad: A spacious living quarters converted from a backyard garage. The residential addition was built to give the aging family member a safe and well-designed home, bring childcare to the growing family, and to maintain privacy for everyone involved.
When contractors were working on the Chophouse Row project in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood back in 2013, they made a startling discovery. Buried several feet below the eclectic mix of historical buildings they discovered the foundation of a small house—the remnants of a pioneer settlement dating back to the late 19th century.
Contractors began calling the structure “Grandma’s House,” and when the project hit some inevitable construction delays, the crew joked about Grandma’s ghost coming back to slow their progress.
This speculative new-construction duplex replaced a run-down 2-story rowhouse. The overall goal was to create modern, open living space, imbuing each unit with its own personality. The units are interlocked in both plan and section, utilizing the limited width of the site creatively to maximize interior spaces.
The lower unit’s entrance is from the front, and the other entrance is from a side walkway. The living/dining/kitchen spaces for each unit face the street, with large windows and high ceilings. The lower unit’s master suite is located at the back, with direct connection to a leafy rear yard. The rear half of the second floor also belongs to this unit, with 2 bedrooms, a full bathroom, and a small office.
Located in one of Seattle’s most established residential areas, City Cabin’s design answers the client’s desire for a private urban retreat that would connect her to nature. Siting the 2,400-square-foot house on the northwest corner of the lot maximizes garden areas on the south and east sides. The home’s staggered footprint allows for more glazing, which increases sun exposure and garden views from every room. With the goal of net-zero energy use, the home’s design incorporates key sustainability features such as photovoltaic panels and an air-to-water heat pump. Planting mature trees and dense greenery onto the site helped transform an ordinary urban infill lot into a private refuge.
Located in the downtown Seattle neighborhood of Belltown, Block 41 celebrates the legacy of an historic warehouse while transforming it into a contemporary, multipurpose event space. The 15,000-square-foot, two-story, brick-and-heavy-timber building began its life in 1927 as an ice warehouse. Over the years it was subject to multiple renovations and modifications, resulting in the fragmentation of the building’s large volumes into a series of dark and maze-like rooms. The new design highlights the building’s history by stripping away later insertions and partitions to reveal its hard-won patina, while simultaneously opening up the volumes to create spaces large enough for formal events, yet flexible enough to accommodate intimate gatherings.
Anchored to a rocky slope and looking out over expansive water views, this house is the expression of the clients’ desire to connect to both the immediate landscape and the view beyond. Cascading organically down the hill, the house remains firmly rooted to the earth even as it rises high above the ground. It is a complex form with a simple goal: capturing the beauty of this spectacular site.
The Beach Drive Waterfront Studio is a 1,100 square foot hideaway residence situated on the east side of Camano Island, Washington. The clients have a larger home located across the road from the studio where their extended family gathers during the summer and on holidays. They utilize this studio when they retire for the evening or wish to entertain close friends on the beach. The studio encapsulates one space as the kitchen, dining, living and sleeping area is separated by a free-standing double-sided stone fireplace. Only the master bathroom is a separate room. All of the spaces are oriented toward Port Susan Bay and the Cascade Mountains for spectacular views.
“The owners were quite generous with the design of their home – they built it for themselves, but also to support the larger art community of which they are a part.” –Jim Olson, Design Principal
An interest in community and a love of art defines this couple and their Lake Washington home. Passionate art patrons, the clients requested that their extensive collection of glass, sculpture and two-dimensional art, mostly by Northwest masters, inspire their home’s design. The collection takes center stage and fills the home. The main floor is organized with a long spine from which the living, dining, family and kitchen areas flow. Art also links the indoors and outdoors, as exterior sculptures and custom glass pieces that delineate the home’s entrance draw visitors inside, through the home and to the waterfront terrace and lawn on the other side. Windows throughout offer sweeping views of Lake Washington from the inside, while also framing exterior views of the artwork within. This transparency creates a sense of openness and unity that balances the couple’s densely displayed art collection with nature, lake and sky.
Building on the success of the original Ritual House of Yoga, goCstudio was hired to renovate a second space located in the same building to accommodate additional classes and events.
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