New California Projects

New Projects

California Buildings News • Q4 2021

Photos: Haley Hill Photography.

Cubic’s New San Diego Campus Features Ware Malcomb Design

Ware Malcomb just completed construction on Cubic Corporation’s campus. Cubic is located at 9233 Balboa Avenue in San Diego. Ware Malcomb provided master planning, architecture, interior architecture and branding services for this project. The campus was comprised of two new, tilt-up concrete LEED v4 BD+C Silver certified office and lab buildings totaling approximately 250,000 square feet. The architectural design for the new threestory buildings uses Cubic branding as a focal point for the project. Many unique design features were incorporated in the main entrance and lobby areas featuring a floating Cubic logo, a three-story feature stair that wraps the exterior glass wall, promoting interaction and movement through the space. Including the new facilities, the overall campus square footage totals approximately 415,000 square feet. The firm’s interior architecture and design studio worked closely with Cubic to establish corporate interiors standards. In addition, the new branded environment created by Ware Malcomb’s in-house Branding studio accentuates Cubic’s culture, highlighting cutting edge technology and the company’s global footprint. The overall office design features a modern and efficient workplace to promote cross-pollination between departments and encourage innovation.

Sacramento Garden Apartment Community

The Strand is a newly opened luxury three-story garden-style apartment community from MBK Rental Living located in Sacramento. It offers bright, open living spaces, luxe interior finishes, and extensive indoor and outdoor amenities. Offering easy access to the capital city, the Strand is located on more than 20 acres within the Rivers master-planned community. There are studios plus one-, two- and three-bedroom residences. There are six floor plan options ranging from 562 to 1,187 square feet and a choice between two designer color schemes. Each residence features modern custom-wood cabinetry, quartz countertops, stainless steel G.E. appliances including a washer and dryer, distinctive wood-style flooring, kitchen pantries, and covered private patios. The landscaped community includes Wi-Fi in common areas; the Resident Clubhouse with entertainer’s kitchen; two resort-style pools with cabanas; a California room with double-sided fireplace, outdoor firepits and gas grills; a spa and fully equipped fitness center; outdoor adult fitness course; and a 4,000-square-foot dog park with seating areas. Residents will also have access to EV charging stations, parcel lockers and mail room, bike racks and a dog wash. Photos courtesy of MBK Rental Living.

California Buildings News • Q3 2021

New Projects

Renovation of Historic Merced Hotel Completed

Page & Turnbull has completed its reimagining of the Hotel Tioga, a landmark structure in the city of Merced, Calif., now converted to market-rate lifestyle housing. The adaptive reuse of this 1928 transitional Renaissance-style structure opened recently as The Tioga, an apartment building with retail space on ground level, a fitness center, and room for a future brew pub and café. The building, located in downtown Merced, is near several new cultural destinations. “Page & Turnbull is delighted to see this important landmark, one of Merced’s largest and most beloved buildings, returned to its former glory and coming to life as a bustling hub of civic life in Merced,” says architect Carolyn Kiernat, principal with Page & Turnbull. “While we are building new housing from the ground up in many places, this classic architectural work, Hotel Tioga, remains a linchpin for Merced’s growth on Main Street.” According to Kiernat, the original hotel offered a place for Yosemite tourists to rest ahead of their excursions up Highway 140 or as passengers on the Yosemite Valley Railroad train. The building cost $250,000 to build in 1928 and is now listed in the National Register of Historic Places. In a city with a growing university population— University of California, Merced, the first U.S. research university built in the 21st century, opened its doors in 2005—the new mixed-use residential offering, developed by Hotel Tioga Investors LLC and dubbed The Tioga, is a national model for reviving downtown areas in small cities. “Adapted and renovated, the Hotel Tioga project has helped pull new, multimillion dollar investments to Merced’s downtown, alongside such major investments as the El Capitan, a Joie De Vivre Hotel and Mainzer theater renovations nearby, creating an ideal work-life community for diverse residents,” says project architect Steven Lee. As the architect for the 73,670-square-foot building project, Page & Turnbull drew from its full-service team of architects, planners, architectural historians, and conservators to adapt the building to meet contemporary needs—a specialty for the firm. Founded in 1973, Page & Turnbull has offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Sacramento.

California Buildings News • Q4 2021

San Carlos’ Incubator Lab Facility Opens

MBC BioLabs empowers emerging life science companies, who often face prohibitive start-up costs of expensive equipment and infrastructure by providing fully equipped co-working laboratory space. In 2017, when MBH Architects began designing MBC BioLabs at 930 Brittan Avenue—a new state-of-the-art, 30,000 square foot space in San Carlos—no one could have predicted just how essential the incubator would become. The unprecedented coronavirus pandemic hit the U.S. while the laboratory was under construction in early 2020. Although Bay Area counties were among the first in the nation to implement a shelter-in-place order, the 930 Brittan project was deemed essential because of the valuable COVID-19 research to be conducted at the facility with the ability to continue construction. MBH Architects—alongside the general contractor, OPI Commercial Builders, and developer, Dewey Land Company—implemented new workflows, remote communication practices, and on-site safety precautions to maintain the team’s timeline and safety. In August 2020, the laboratory opened to several companies devoted to developing accurate, budget-friendly COVID19 tests and other healthcare-related research. MBC BioLabs wanted to challenge the traditional sterile aesthetic of the windowless, all-white research lab. The redevelopment consists of three warehouses combined into a single facility with a ground-up three-story addition. For the interiors, the design team was inspired by MBC’s vibrant brand identity. The firm utilized its bright colors in the materials, fixtures, and environmental graphics to invigorate the space and connect the laboratories, common areas, and workspaces. Large windows to the outside and interior glazing illuminate the ground-floor laboratories and give scientists long site lines while inviting intrigue from passersby. A warehouse size hydraulic bi-fold door both allows fresh air fill to the facility’s central kitchen gathering area and event space and connects to an outdoor patio. Occupants utilize the indoor/outdoor event space for wellness activities, investor networking events, and social gatherings. Photos: Tyler Chartier.