Category: Design Process

adaptive reuse

Hennebery Eddy Designs Adaptive Reuse of 1911 Building into Hip KEX Hotel

At one of the most trafficked corners in Portland – the intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and Couch, just past the Burnside bridgehead – sits a three-story, wood-framed structure with a brick exterior. The building has anchored this spot for more than 100 years, but only recently has it become a destination. With much fanfare, the KEX hotel opened here in November 2019, offering a unique experience that was many years in the making.

Hennebery Eddy designed the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of this historic building, which formerly housed The Vivian apartments, into a hostel with a ground-floor gastropub for the Icelandic brand KEX and local restaurant group ChefStable. Guest rooms on the second and third floors offer a variety of private and shared accommodations, while the open ground floor hosts casual dining and a constant stream of musical acts — a key focus of the KEX model. The hostel also features a courtyard with exterior seating and a stunning red neon sign, a rooftop bar and a community gathering room – Gym & Tonic – and conveniences for travelers like a sauna, shared kitchen and laundry rooms, and bike storage.

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PAM Rothko Pavilion Hennebery Eddy Architects Portland Oregon

Designing a Showpiece for Accessibility

Making the Portland Art Museum’s New Rothko Pavilion a Space for All Through Universal Design

The Portland Art Museum has long held accessibility at the core of its mission and offered a variety of services to assist visitors of all types. But the museum itself comprises two buildings, each with portions constructed in different eras and incrementally updated and expanded over several decades. Navigating the existing galleries across the various historic buildings has become increasingly problematic, and the need to create better connections has become a priority.

Hennebery Eddy, in partnership with Vinci Hamp Architects of Chicago, is designing the new Rothko Pavilion and campus renovations, which will connect the museum’s two existing buildings at every level, add 30,000 square feet of community and exhibition space, and establish a new, more accessible main entrance.

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Firm Promotes Sustainable, Equitable Design Through ‘Net-Positive Awards’

Hennebery Eddy’s second-annual Net-Positive Awards capped a month-long celebration of all things sustainability and honored internal teams for their achievements in healthy, efficient, and adaptive design. Project teams in design and construction were encouraged to share the story of how their designs are creating net-positive solutions responsive to clients, users, and the environment. A panel of five judges from among our staff had their work cut out for them. Ultimately, they selected the following projects, which represent the range of net-positive impacts achievable through our design process.

Rendered image by Hennebery Eddy Architects of PDX Terminal Balancing & Concourse E Extension, viewed from Airport Way

First Place: Net-Positive Project of the Year – PDX Concourse E Extension

This project (which garnered an honorable mention in last year’s awards program) is targeting completion next summer — and when complete, will offer a remarkable new passenger experience informed by resiliency, equity, and biophilia. The unique, column-free space with high, canted ceilings and a sweeping curtain wall will feature abundant daylight (lighting loads reduced 70%) and views of Mount Hood and the Columbia River. Durable, sustainably sourced, and locally produced materials are also designed to equitably serve a broad population. The project is on track for LEED Gold certification — no small feat for a facility that essentially operates 24/7.

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COTE Top Ten for Students Internship Focuses on Net-Positive Design

This summer, Hennebery Eddy has the pleasure of hosting three design interns. In a three-part series throughout the summer, each intern has shared their internship experience and takeaways from their time with the firm. This month, Philippe Bernard, a COTE Top Ten for Students winner and graduate of Laval University, reflects on his time with the firm. Read previous posts by interns Haley here and Jordan here.

AIA COTE Top Ten for Students intern Philippe Bernard
COTE Top Ten for Students intern Philippe Bernard (left) meets with fellow staff members for input on their latest design.

This internship opportunity came at a pivotal moment in my development as a future architect. As a student, I participated in the AIA COTE Top Ten for Students 2019 contest, and our team was the first Canadian contestant to win this international competition! It was excellent news, considering that I was also completing my master’s degree at Laval University in Quebec City. It is thanks to this sustainable design competition that I was put in contact with Hennebery Eddy, an architectural firm also very committed to eco-friendly design. This is a very rewarding experience for me, given the important language adaptation that I have to demonstrate as a French-speaking Canadian. French is my mother tongue, so immersion in an English-speaking country and workplace is very instructive.

Prior to this internship in Portland, I had the chance to complete other work experience in various architectural firms in Quebec. The corporate scale of Hennebery Eddy is very interesting, combining the advantages of a large firm and the welcoming side of a smaller office. It is a firm with significant resources given its size of 65 employees, which offers a stimulating work environment. I really appreciate the attention of all the Hennebery Eddy staff in listening to my questions and comments. Everyone is treated equally, creating a very democratic and pleasant working environment.

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My Experience as an Intern at Hennebery Eddy

By Jordan Micham, Design Intern

This summer, Hennebery Eddy has the pleasure of hosting three design interns. In a three-part series throughout the summer, each intern will share their internship experience and takeaways from their time with the firm. This month, Jordan Micham, an undergraduate student at the University of Cincinnati, describes what he’s been up to during his time with the firm. Read the other posts in this series, by Haley here and Philippe here.

Intern at Hennebery Eddy, Jordan Micham, hiking with fellow interns
Hennebery Eddy interns and staff took a break from the office for a hike at Angel’s Rest; Jordan is on the far left.

I’ve always been drawn to the West. The dynamic terrain and variety of cultural influences made Portland an appealing destination for someone born and raised in the Midwest suburbs. Prior to starting work as an intern at Hennebery Eddy, I completed three other internships, ranging from small- to large-scale firms. Approaching my final year of my undergraduate studio, I wanted the opportunity to explore a mid-size firm in attempt to find a niche that was less corporate but still tackled more complex projects; Hennebery Eddy’s ensemble of around 65 people was the perfect scenario to do just that. The firm rests in the heart of one of the most vigorously design-oriented communities in America; Portland is a hub for creative innovation. My theme for this summer is to learn from the lifestyle of the anti-conformist creative.

In my studies at the University of Cincinnati, we’ve focused on the conceptual design process, primarily concentrating on human-spatial interaction. Getting involved in the design world through the internship program has helped me gain a better grasp on the industry and has informed my perspective on architecture more toward the concept of creating an engaging blend of form and function while designing within constraints. What they don’t teach you in the classroom is that few clients have the budget for your extreme designs. I’ve learned that architecture is often less about creating an evocative design but more about finding a way to translate the wants and needs of the client into a design that blends form and function while still satisfying the various building constraints.

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Lessons Learned: The Latest in Innovative Interior Design from NeoCon

By Jessy Miguel and Liz Bray, IIDA

Each year, Hennebery Eddy sends members of our interior design team to the NeoCon conference in Chicago, billed as “the world’s leading platform for the commercial design industry.” Jessy and Liz share what they saw at this year’s June show.

innovative interior designers at Hennebery Eddy Architects
Liz Bray and Jessy Miguel at the Chicago Skydeck during the 2019 NeoCon interior design conference.

It’s well established that beige cubicles are no longer best practice for workplace design. But the world of innovative interior design and planning is constantly progressing to promote experiences that are productive, flexible, and inspiring. Because of Hennebery Eddy’s commitment to net-positive spaces that are healthy, efficient, and adaptive, our interior design team is always keeping tabs on these advancements.

This year, NeoCon showcased a fresh perspective on contract furnishings. We were inspired by the integrity of materials, attention to detail, tactile experience, expressions of structure, and a lighthearted intelligence. The following trends stood out among manufacturers at the show.

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Haley Teske design intern

Architecture Internship Provides New Perspective for Design Student

By Haley Teske, Design Intern

This summer, Hennebery Eddy has the pleasure of hosting three design interns. In a three-part series throughout the summer, each intern will share their architecture internship experience and takeaways from their time with the firm. First, Haley Teske, a COTE Top Ten for Students winner and student at Montana State University, reflects on her experience so far. Read the other posts in this series, by Jordan here and Philippe here. 

My initial exposure to Hennebery Eddy began during my undergraduate experience at Montana State University. President Tim Eddy and Associate Dawn Carlton, both alumni of MSU, have been frequenting our school as active advisory council members for some years now and are highly regarded by the faculty.

Through studio critiques and my involvement with AIAS (American Institute of Architecture Students), I was quickly acquainted with both individuals and found them memorable due to a tangible authenticity. Fast-forward to graduate school, I stubbornly decided that I must work in Portland after deeming it one of the best design cities in the states. Hennebery Eddy immediately came to mind. Dawn was generous enough to give me a tour of the office, and I found the firm extremely appealing. Each design projected a distinct character to its history, site, and use as opposed to the ego of an architect. Rarely does a firm display attention to the needs of a project on such an apparent scale. If this firm listened so well to its clients, then it must listen as closely to the needs of its employees.

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What I Learned from the Net Zero Emerging Leaders Internship

Hennebery Eddy Architects Net Zero Emerging Leaders intern Madelaine Murray
Hennebery Eddy Architects Net Zero Emerging Leaders intern Madelaine Murray, left, works with design staff member Pooja Kashyap to capture project data for the DDx.

In 2019, Hennebery Eddy received a Net Zero Emerging Leaders Internship grant from Energy Trust of Oregon to hire a sustainable design student intern to help us comply with our Architecture 2030 Commitment, integrate new sustainable design QC checks throughout our design process, and conduct post-occupancy evaluations focused on building performance. The internship demonstrates our dedication to the 2030 pledge and our broader net-positive philosophy and integrated sustainable design process. In the second post of a two-part series, intern Madelaine Murray shares her what she learned from her time at Hennebery Eddy. Read her first post here.

Purpose

The primary role of Net Zero Emerging Leaders Intern for Hennebery Eddy is to help our sustainability committee report the firm’s 2018 projects performance metrics, using AIA’s Architecture 2030 Commitment tool called Design Data Exchange (DDx).

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Building the Future of Historic Preservation: Teaching a Course on Building Preservation Plans

Nestled on a hilltop above Skyline Boulevard in Southwest Portland, the Aubrey Watzek House sits quietly, almost as a suspended moment of early modernism just minutes from downtown Portland. The Watzek House, designed by renowned Oregon architect John Yeon and built in 1937, is his masterpiece in wood and the precursor to Pacific Northwest Regional Modernism. The house is now owned by the University of Oregon’s College of Design.

This famous house has carefully articulated use guidelines — and designation as a National Historic Landmark and a local City of Portland landmark. But the house, like any aging structure, is showing its susceptibility to age and the Pacific Northwest elements. While a roof replacement is planned for the short term, the Watzek House requires a long-term preservation plan that takes a proactive approach to anticipating, planning for, and implementing maintenance and repairs that retain the historic building’s integrity. A comprehensive look at the building’s current condition, use, and its future is also long overdue. This need is the impetus behind a graduate-level historic preservation planning course taught by principal David Wark and associate Carin Carlson at the University of Oregon’s School of Architecture & Environment Historic Preservation Program.

A group of historic preservation planning students stand on the lawn outside of a the Aubrey Watzek House, an example of Pacific Northwest regional Modernism.
Students outside the Aubrey Watzek House in Portland, Ore.

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Structural Steel Construction Complete at PDX Concourse E Extension

Milestone marks midway point for construction of the 148,000sf Concourse E extension at Portland International Airport, anticipated to open mid-2020

Construction workers watch a steel beam being placed by a crane at Portland International Airport.
Part of #pdxnext, construction workers placed the last piece of structural steel on PDX’s Concourse E Extension. Photo courtesy of Jerry McCarthy, Port of Portland.

Construction workers placed the last piece of structural steel for the 148,000-square-foot expansion of Concourse E at Portland International Airport Thursday, Feb. 21. Part of the Port of Portland’s PDXNext program, a series of updates and upgrades to deliver a convenient, comfortable, uniquely PDX experience for travelers and employees now and into the future, the Concourse E expansion extends 830 feet east along the airport’s entry drive, adding six passenger gates and balancing the number of passengers using the north and south sides of the airport. The $215 million project began construction in 2017 and is on schedule to open mid-2020.

Poised as an impactful gateway to the airport, the Concourse E extension will create a memorable entry to PDX, named Best Domestic Airport by Travel + Leisure for the sixth consecutive year in 2018. The project also includes additional concessions, restrooms, support spaces, and amenities. Representatives from Portland International Airport, Skanska, Hennebery Eddy Architects, and Fentress Architects attended a topping-out ceremony, placing a signed beam to mark the occasion.

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