Showcase 5 - Gresham, Smith and Partners

GreSham, Smith and PartnerS

ShowcaSe

showcase 5

Gresham, Smith and Partners provides design and consulting solutions for the built environment that contribute to the success of national and international clients. For more than 45 years, GS&P has focused on enhancing quality of life and sustainability within our communities. GS&P consists of industry-leading professionals practicing architecture and engineering design as well as scientists and highly specialized strategic and management consultants in Aviation, Corporate and Urban Design, Environmental Services, Federal, Healthcare, Industrial, Land Planning, Transportation and Water Services. GS&P consistently ranks among the top architecture and engineering firms in the world. For more information regarding GS&P, visit www.greshamsmith.com.

contents

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ACRP Report 52 – Wayfinding and Signing Guidelines for Airport Terminals and Landside

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Central Hamilton County Scenario Planning Study

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CSX 550 Water Street

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Dayton International Airport, Land Use and Development Options Plan

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Dollar General Retail Store Program

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Gerald R. Ford International Airport, Terminal Area and Parking Improvements

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Grimes Bridge Road at Warsaw Road/ Norcross Street Roundabout

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Hotel Indigo

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Huashan Hospital

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Jackson National Life

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Marcella Vivrette Smith Park Master Plan

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Mississippi DOT ITS Integrator/Video Migration

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Richmond Corporate Client

foreword

A few years ago, several of our designers were discussing the subject: What is good design?” The conversation eventually turned to: How do we define good design?” As you can imagine, responses were an expected mix of perspectives.

The group eventually agreed on two points: The conversation needed to become a constant dialogue in our practices, and “good design” to GS&P was a solution focused on a design’s ability to help our clients achieve success.

Showcase was born out of that discussion as an annual means to recognize and distinguish the projects we produce that exceed our benchmark of success, and as a way to continue the discussion regarding “what is good design?” Becoming our first published record of externally judged work, Showcase represents the variety of disciplines, services and industries we provide, and the creativity, innovation and problem solving that sets us apart. Project teams submit recent work and build a case for why their design is considered successful. The result is a notable group of projects that solidify our ability to successfully serve a wide variety of industries and client types.

In preparation for this year’s foreword, I reviewed all of the Showcase projects from the past five years, along with the communications I’ve shared with you marking each edition. I found it encouraging that the same foundation the effort was based upon then, still remains today and improves with each passing year:

“I am sure that with time, the method and outcome of Showcase will change, but the intent never should — a collection that instills pride in GS&P’s ability to deliver world-class design services to so many aspects of the built environment, and facilitates success for the clients we serve.” (Showcase 1) After five years of Showcase collections, I continue to be impressed by the range and caliber of our teams and their designs. I am particularly proud to present this year’s collection, as it proves that great design doesn’t rely on a large budget or extensive scope; it is the result of internal teamwork, collaboration and a willingness to think differently. These projects once again confirm the rewarding experiences we deliver to our clients that support their success.

Congratulations to all the teams whose work is represented in Showcase 5, and here’s to the next five years!

James W. Bearden, AIA, CEO

ACRP Report 52 – Wayfinding and Signing Guidelines for Airport Terminals and Landside

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resenting a complex subject in an intelligible and user-friendly manner can be a very complex task in itself. When Jim Harding and the GS&P team began working with the Airport Cooperative Research Program on a much-needed comprehensive guide for airport wayfinding (ACRP Report 52:

Wayfinding and Signage Guidelines for Airport Terminals and Landside),

they faced a complicated challenge that had been decades in the making.

Although a scattering of reference material about the subject existed, there was no single comprehensive resource to specifically help airports understand the need for wayfinding strategy, the importance of a consistent program and the impacts on passenger satisfaction and airport performance.

The term wayfinding means more than getting around by following signs and maps. Harding describes it in a wider context. “Wayfinding encompasses all the ways in which people orient themselves in physical space from place to place,” he says. “It can be described as the process of using spatial and environmental information to find our way in a built environment. It’s not considered a separate activity from traditional signage design, but a more inclusive way of assessing all the environmental issues that affect our ability to find our way.”

As anyone who has travelled by air knows, it can be disorienting and stressful to arrive in an unfamiliar airport and quickly discern how to find your connecting flight, luggage or a rental car. Large wayfinding programs can have more than 10,000 signs and environmental cues, so it’s easy to understand how valuable a well-thought-out strategy and implementation guide can be — not only in terms of the impact on travelers, but also on those expected to plan, manage and maintain the systems.

Strategy first, implementation later The GS&P team’s job was not only to create a new guide that airports

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Client

Location

Airport Cooperative Research Program

Washington, DC

worldwide could reference and adapt to their specific airport environments, but to do so in a way that pointed users to understand and develop an overall strategy. “The need for good wayfinding at airports is universal,” Harding says. “Previous to this project, there was information out there, but nothing that targeted the specific needs of the airport in a holistic way. The information that was available was fragmented and often out-of-date, or if it told you what to do, it didn’t tell you why. If you don’t understand the ‘why’ behind wayfinding design, you will not be able to properly diagnose the true extent of the wayfinding problem, much less develop holistic wayfinding solutions. Until an airport understands the ‘why’ part of wayfinding, their sign system will lack the critical components of connectivity, continuity and consistency, which translates into decreased customer satisfaction.”

involvement from the top is too often overlooked.

To this end, the GS&P team included what was essentially streamlined training material for guidebook users on how to discern wayfinding strategy and logic. Guidebook users are instructed to analyze and review all airport signage in the context of an airport’s overall environment, and work directly with senior management to develop a plan.

According to Harding,

“When passengers have an unpleasant experience at an airport, whether it’s with finding parking, getting to ground transportation or getting lost in the terminal, they spend less money. No business wants to cause their customers distress, so it’s crucial to get buy-in from senior management, because most wayfinding programs fall under an airport’s capital expense program.”

The guidebook also coaches users to adopt a philosophy that heightens the importance of wayfinding and places priorities on competing elements. Users are encouraged to consider important questions, such as: Is this sign of primary importance or is it more secondary? Is an advertisement more important that a navigating element at a specific location? Over time, Harding hopes the guidebook will help shift the basic philosophy of how wayfinding programs are approached.

“The philosophy drives home the fact that wayfinding needs to take a higher priority than other types of visual information. When you understand the logic behind your wayfinding, and the key concepts that drive it, then you can solve essential problems. Just knowing how to prioritize all the signs in the

Market

Services

Aviation

Planning Signage/Graphics Transportation

An encompassing goal of the guidebook is to help airports understand why wayfinding is important, and why the logic behind it is critical to developing and maintaining a successful wayfinding system.

...even detailed sign elements — symbols, colors and typography — play important roles in customer understanding.

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RIGHT: Elements of the guidebook include a discussion of color contrast, fonts and legibility issues. Real-world examples accompany the information to assist a reader’s understanding on properly applying the concepts.

BELOW: Case studies are used throughout the guidebook to provide additional information and examples of best practices in action.

airport environment is a huge step in creating an effective program,” Harding says.

Organizing information for complex environments Since much of the content of the ACRP guidebook deals with abstract concepts such as strategy and logic, the GS&P team needed to find ways to make the information digestible, clear and relevant. Much of the challenge was organizational, but the team also sought insight directly from their intended readers.

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They decided to meet for a half-day workshop with a cadre of professionals from the Airport Sign Managers Network.

Participants were presented with a proposed table of contents and asked to rank subject areas in order of importance.

“During our research phase, we tried to involve the broadest range of people possible, and then we made sure to stay on top of the communication pipeline,” Harding says. “The workshop was extremely helpful. We knew we really needed to get input from airport managers and design professionals about the content of the guidebook. We wanted to

make sure every voice was heard and accounted for.”

After learning more about the audience’s key concerns, Harding’s team prioritized the information in an optimal way for guidebook users along four main airport areas of focus: the terminal, parking areas, roadways, and curbside and ground transportation zones.

Information was supplemented with professional insights, data, photographs, information graphics, training suggestions and case studies throughout.

The case studies, a mix of team experience and research conducted with airports around the world,

provide specific examples of wayfinding successes and breakdowns. For example, one study showed how an almost universally accepted symbol for rental cars is not universally understood by passengers. The guidebook showed other symbols that test subjects found more effective, proving the point that even detailed sign elements — symbols, colors and typography — play important roles in customer understanding.

Worldwide reaction There was near-immediate positive reaction to the ACRP Wayfinding Guidebook after it was published in August 2011, and Harding hears from many airport professionals about how they are applying information from the guidebook. Some are in the process of reconfiguring and revisioning their entire wayfinding strategy,

while others are working on specific problem areas.

team

James R. Harding, SEGD

“Airports are configured differently with a varying range of wayfinding challenges. The solutions are not necessarily easily deciphered, and that was part of the problem,” Harding says. “The fact that so many professionals find the guide valuable is extremely gratifying because the point of the guidebook is that there are no ‘one size fits all’ solutions to airport wayfinding.”

PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE

Jim Alderman, SEGD PROJECT MANAGER

Matthew J. Frankel CONTRIBUTING AUTHOR, RESEARCHER

Marshall Elizer, Jr., P.E., PTOE CONTRIBUTING AUTHOR

An unexpected surprise — and one of the most prominent proofs of the project’s effectiveness and reach — is the amount of feedback that flowed in from airports all over the world. “I expected to hear from airports within North America, but I really wasn’t expecting it to have such a global reach,” Harding says.

“But when you start to hear from places like India and Italy, you feel like you’re really having an impact.

It certainly tells you that there was a need for it.”▪

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Central Hamilton County Scenario Planning Study

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hen Volkswagen announced its $1 billion investment near Chattanooga in Hamilton County, Tennessee, regional planners realized the area was on the cusp of a significant growth surge. Add to that a proposed bridge over the Tennessee River that would create a new east-west transportation corridor, and the county was in for major changes to the environment, infrastructure and quality of life for area residents. By the year 2035, the area could see as many as 20,000 new homes, and more than 4,000 jobs created from new industrial and ancillary uses necessary to serve the expected growth. While the prospect of additional jobs and residents is exciting, planners were also instantly aware of the potential impact of this imminent and massive change, and that specific growth implications required serious consideration. GS&P was asked to organize a comprehensive, multidimensional growth planning study — the first of its kind in the region — to gather detailed data on land use, mobility, infrastructure, public service, and natural resources. The client charged GS&P with two main goals: to gain a comprehensive understanding of the full impact of growth over the next 25 years, and to include input from citizens on the resulting growth choices.

A Fresh Approach Central Hamilton County is largely rural with the site of the Volkswagen plant situated on a former army munitions plant in a very sparse area. GS&P Senior Planner Kevin Tilbury says that there was more than excitement generated when the automaker’s announcement was made. “Though it was very good news, after the dust settled, the County took a step back and realized that this, combined with the proposed bridge over the river, could fundamentally transform this part of the county.

Growth in the area had been guided by a comprehensive plan, and a

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Client

Location

Tennessee Department of Transportation, Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency

Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee

series of small area plans that were developed long before the Volkswagen plant and the bridge were ever considered, so all of the plans needed review as part of the new study.”

farmland and the associated costs in all areas.

GS&P conducted two sets of public workshops at key milestones in the study, and listened carefully to citizens’ issues and concerns as they reviewed each scenario.

Heading their list were concerns for traffic congestion, adequate infrastructure to support growth, and the protection of natural resources. Participants also wanted to understand the impact on schools, transportation, rural

Tilbury and team determined that a scenario planning approach would provide the best framework for the multi-dimensional study. By creating conceptual examples of various growth options and their potential effects, planners could visualize changes to the region spanning the next 25 years, and make decisions accordingly.

After hearing initial concerns from the client and local residents, the team presented three scenarios.

First, the Current Trends scenario outlined the effects of

Market

Services

Transportation

Planning

continuing the current growth and development of low-density residential patterns and power centers, such as strip malls with national tenants or anchor stores like Walmart. Next, citizens looked at the Comprehensive and Area Plans scenario, which outlined policy recommendations and area plans over the past decade, including a shift toward mixed-use properties to preserve open space and rural land. Finally, participants were given the opportunity to view a completely new perspective on growth in the region via the compact-focused Alternative Growth scenario, which featured mixed-use and

village-like residential areas with walkable neighborhoods clustered around schools, a town center and small stores.

Hamilton County in 25 years Through careful analysis, GS&P made seven key revelations that painted a picture of the next quarter century. First, the study showed that shifting from less compact (Current Trends) to more compact (Alternative Growth) could have a significant impact. Even a modest shift in

density — from an average of three dwelling units per acre to just over five — could result in 40 percent less land consumed and greater preservation of environmentally sensitive areas and farmlands; 40 percent less impervious surface; $49 million less in sanitary sewer and potable water supply infrastructure costs (and 28 percent less water consumed) fewer fire, rescue, and law enforcement facilities and personnel required to maintain adequate response times and service coverage; and shorter automobile trips resulting in greater potential for walking, bicycling and riding transit.

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Through careful analysis, GS&P made seven key revelations that painted a picture of the next quarter century. The study showed that shifting from less compact (Current Trends Scenario) to more compact (Alternative Growth) could have a significant impact.

Comprehensive and area plans Transporation framework

Current growth trends Transporation framework

alternative growth Transporation framework

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The impact on impervious surface alone was a major consideration.

“Buildings, pavements, sidewalk, and parking lots all combine to form impervious surface, which collects solar heat and produces heat islands and stormwater runoff, which in turn creates flooding potential and discharges harmful pollutants,” explains Lindsay Puckett, GS&P planner and Central Hamilton team member.

“Generally, the greater the amount of impervious surface, the greater the potential for stormwater flooding and harmful runoff.”

Stakeholders also learned about the impact on transportation. GS&P recommended placing homes and businesses closer together, which would result in shorter vehicular trips and less demand on infrastructure. Greater distances

mean longer trips, more time spent driving and more traffic.

Less driving equals less stress on roadways, and in turn, more walking and biking.

Another fundamental aspect of future planning was the importance of agency coordination during all phases of the planning process. According to Puckett, “Study findings demonstrate that the strategic placement of schools, parks, fire, rescue and law enforcement facilities significantly increases accessibility to the community. It reduces the total number of new facilities required, and underscores the need for coordination across agencies. Successful growth patterns would only be possible with everyone working together to plan effective strategies.”

“It is more advantageous to plan for these uses before they happen than try to mitigate them after the fact.” says Lindsay Puckett, GS&P planner.

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A Red Flag One of the study’s most significant findings was the lack of nonresidential land uses within the study area, which indicated that future residents would need to travel elsewhere to meet daily needs such as working or shopping.

This discovery became GS&P’s call to action to the client — failure to plan for non-residential land uses could have a negative impact on transportation and mobility.

“Current assumptions about growth in the study area place residential growth far ahead of employment growth,” says Puckett. “It is more advantageous to plan for these uses before they happen than try to mitigate them after the fact.”

GS&P’s analysis demonstrated that coordinated land use and infrastructure decisions can result in significant capital cost savings.

Specifically, Central Hamilton County could save over $30 million in sewer infrastructure costs through better development practices.

Personal versus shared space was also addressed. Through the scenarios, GS&P was able to show that well-conceived tradeoffs between personal and shared space could be beneficial to all stakeholders. For example, more compact growth means smaller yards. However, devoting larger tracts of land to shared open space such as parks can provide abundant room for residents to relax, play and enjoy the outdoors.

At the conclusion of the study, GS&P recommended that a number of plans in the central portion

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of the county be revisited. Plans such as the proposed bridge over the Tennessee River would fundamentally change the growth prospects for Central Hamilton County. Municipal comprehensive and small area plans, long-range transportation plans, schools and facility plans, and water and sewer plans could also have a significant impact, and would need to be studied carefully before moving forward.

What’s Next?

As a direct result of GS&P’s outreach efforts, citizen stakeholders became informed decision-makers and rejected the status quo by endorsing a move toward thoughtful and coordinated decisions about growth, development and infrastructure investments in Central Hamilton County. GS&P further encouraged the client to continue the public dialogue so that questions and concerns can be addressed as they arise. team

“The County is using these findings and some of the growth models to organize and develop a plan for the entire region,” says Tilbury.

“Ultimately, this was an extremely successful collaboration between GS&P and the Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency. As a direct result, we have formed an ongoing relationship with the RPA, we’re currently working with them to update their Long Range Transportation Plan, and we will continue to serve the RPA as a trusted advisor for years to come.”▪

Marshall Elizer, Jr., P.E., PTOE PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE

Mark A. Holloran, P.E. PROJECT MANAGER

Kevin W. Tilbury, AICP PROJECT PROFESSIONAL

Lindsay Smith Puckett, AICP ASSISTANT PLANNER

Cynthia Frear Tony H. Garcia Shawn E. Means additional

GS&P staff engaged citizen stakeholders through a series of public workshops over the course of the study. The team listened carefully to issues and concerns, and used the feedback to show how each different growth and development scenarios would affect each stakeholder. Through surveys and other prioritization methods, the citizens endorsed a move toward thoughtful and coordinated decisions about growth, development and infrastructure investments in Central Hamilton County.

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CSX 550 WATER STREET

A

s large corporations evolve, diversify and grow, it’s not uncommon for their employees to be located in multiple facilities within the same city. That’s exactly the situation that CSX Corporation — one of the nation’s leading transportation companies providing rail, intermodal and rail-totruck transportation services — found themselves in. Multiple locations and a pending lease renewal posed space utilization challenges and logistical problems for 1,000 CSX employees located in one of their largest leased locations in Jacksonville, Florida. The company was faced with the decision to either renew the lease at 301 W. Bay St. (one of Jacksonville’s largest downtown Class A office buildings) and continue as-is, or find a way to bring all employees closer to the headquarters building. In a bold move, CSX chose to unite the teams by relocating their Technology and Intermodal companies to 550 Water St., next door to the corporate headquarters.

With less than 10 months to prepare, CSX called upon GS&P’s interior design team to develop new workplace standards for a progressive office environment, document the design, and complete the construction and furniture installation.

Every department is accessible from the front entrance and main lobby. Warm tones, regionally inspired materials and dynamic curves draw visitors in and around the space.

Though the relocation would be complicated, CSX also realized the tremendous opportunities the newly charted course presented.

Not only would the move create a more unified workforce through the close proximity to headquarters, the company could also enjoy the benefits of shared resources and amenities, and outdated workplace standards could finally be evaluated and redesigned to match new corporate initiatives.

The relocation, in essence, became the springboard to align the office environment with the company’s refreshed branding and new tag line, “How Tomorrow Moves.”

Going for the goals The first of CSX’s four main objectives was to make sure the new work environments aligned with the corporate vision. Over the course of three years, CSX Corporation had invested in a complete rebranding of the CSX system, and GS&P was able to demonstrate the benefits of realigning the new workspace with CSX’s fresh ideas, new branding effort and PR campaign. “A lot had changed in the 15 years since GS&P designed office space for CSX at 301 W. Bay St.,” says Leith Oatman, interior design principal at GS&P, “and they were ready to transition their work environment to reflect

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Client

Location

CSX Corporation

Jacksonville, Florida

their use of technology to manage the rails and complement their rebranding effort.”

strategy initiatives. These tours empowered CSX to articulate a clear vision of tomorrow’s environment, which was really quite simple: CSX Technology and Intermodal groups desired a work environment that was more open and colorful, offered teaming spaces and was more efficient by reducing workstation footprints.

They also wanted to relocate some program functions that were in closed, hard wall spaces into more flexible workstations. These ideals translated into the need for flexibility to change the workplace as the business changed.

So how does a company align a physical space with its brand?

One element of the new campaign promoted the fact that freight by rail is less expensive than freight by trucks. After the economic downturn in 2008, CSX seized the opportunity to help businesses discover ways to save money, and the company wanted to parlay that cost savings into energy efficient space. “It doesn’t matter if the space is pretty, because that’s subjective,” explains Oatman.

“But, efficient and sustainable office space is an objective design standard. By creating a work environment that encourages collaboration through lower panels, greater flexibility of work rooms, conference rooms and teaming spaces, businesses can mitigate barriers to the daily business of producing work.”

Some changes were easy to identify and plan, for instance: losing the maze of dark, claustrophobic cubicles in favor of more efficient work stations with lower panels; collaborative spaces with shared enclaves; and private offices located along the core to maximize efficiency.

Oatman says CSX toured some of GS&P’s other office projects that were a product of workplace

Goal number two, right-sizing the real estate, produced some of the more profound changes to the space. A perfect complement to the relocation effort, right-sizing, the process of examining individual employees and matching the most efficient work space to their specific roles, was a timely exercise in self-analysis. “Over the evolution of an organization, titles change and roles evolve,” explains Oatman.

“People can end up in closed offices because of their titles — which does not always reflect what they do during the course of a day — or someone may take over an office simply because it’s available.

Moving gives an organization an opportunity to examine those paradigms, and create more flexible types of meeting spaces, like the cyber café. It’s an opportunity

Market

Services

Awards

Corporate+Urban Design

Interior Design Programming Signage/Graphics Sustainability

2011 USGBC North Florida - Project of the Year, Interior Design 2012 Jacksonville Urban Land Institute - Project of the Year, Private Sector Category

The design team and client recognized the importance of informal exchange of knowledge and developed central locations that are much more than a water cooler or coffee station.

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Furniture used in the break room was found in storage at 550 and reused as a part of the design team’s sustainable initiatives. The company’s branding messages were incorporated throughout the space.

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“...efficient and sustainable office space is an objective design standard.” says Oatman, “...creating a work environment that encourages collaboration.” gresham, smith and partners

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for the workforce to have closed, yet less formal meeting spaces.

The reality is that there is an exchange of knowledge over the water cooler, so why not celebrate the importance of the incidental communication by creating a central location on a floor that is more than a stuffy coffee station?”

employee has completed an assignment. “We designed ‘garages’ to house movable pedestals for employees that don’t have their own workspace.

They would simply pick up their movable pedestal in the morning and check out a workstation for the day.”

CSX wanted to demonstrate its commitment to the environment and its prominence as an efficient railroad company, and did so by achieving LEED-CI Gold Certification...

With right-sizing, the best and highest use of the floor space is made available. “For instance,” adds project planner Brooke Koepke, “CSX Technology created a telecommuter program which was a new concept to them. The telecommuters solved the issue of the ebb and flow of the tech department where temporary or contract workers are often employed.” In these situations, real estate remains unused, or wasted, once a temporary contract

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To meet the third goal of committing to an urban core and a campus feel, the client chose a streetscape design to connect the leased and owned buildings and create a community atmosphere to help transition seasoned employees who were apprehensive about the move. A streetscape design “helps define wayfinding and adds paths that are safer for employees to maneuver,” says Koepke. And even relatively small investments, like street pavers,

“created an urban core and campuslike feel between headquarters and 550 Water St.” Finally, CSX wanted to demonstrate its commitment to the environment and its prominence as an efficient railroad company, and did so by achieving LEED-CI Gold Certification for the new 550 Water St. location. A few of the many sustainable design elements that contributed to the gold certification included: specifically designed millwork to accommodate recycling throughout the floor; fresh air intake and indoor/outdoor air quality monitoring; the creation of separate HVAC zones that account for different solar exposures and heat gain; new lighting design that delivers a 26 percent reduction in electrical loads; and improved plumbing fixtures that reduce water use by 35 percent Even after the LEED Charrette process, where specific points are identified for LEED certification, the design team discovered a collection of stored furniture that CSX was able to repurpose for use in the Intermodal

BEFORE: Previous conditions included a maze of dark, claustrophobic cubicles.

AFTER: Every department is accessible from the front entrance and main lobby.

Warm tones, regionally inspired materials and dynamic curves draw visitors in and around the space.

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TOP RIGHT: CSX’s new branding elements, such as the logo seen here, are incorporated throughout work environment. This conference room was strategically located with an unobstructed view of CSX Headquarters across the street.

BOTTOM RIGHT: Enclaves replaced large workstations and an abundance of private offices, moving CSX from a “me” to “we” work environment.

Group’s large employee break room. Throughout the project, the design team specified remanufactured systems furniture as a sustainability strategy, and the discovery of unused furniture fit perfectly into the plan. Though using the remanufactured furniture represented significant cost savings ($1,500 for remanufactured versus $4,500 for new), Oatman says it wasn’t so much about the money. “It was more about the right thing to do — tapping into resources that may have found their way to a landfill if not for reuse or the remanufacturing industry.”

Moving in together The initial decision to relocate the two groups raised some serious questions. “There was a lot of anxiety about whether they would be able to fit, and, unfortunately, Jacksonville doesn’t have a lot of high-rise buildings with 180,000 contiguous square feet,” states Oatman. “Moving to 550 Water St. allowed them to share amenities that were already provided to employees at CSX’s headquarters.

There were synergies that they could capitalize on by having groups literally across the street from HQ rather than two or three blocks down the street.”

As expected, the benefits of shared space were immediately

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evident. For years, the CSX culture included “town hall” meetings that provided a community setting for executive management to have conversations with large groups of employees, like the Intermodal and Technology teams. “When they were at 301 W. Bay St., they had to rent an auditorium for town hall meetings,” says Oatman. “Even the logistics of having 1,000 people walk three blocks was complicated.”

Now, employees at 550 simply walk across the street to enjoy a subsidized cafeteria, barber shop, full gym and a large training area with conference rooms.

The move’s planning and design were not without anxiety, especially when faced with losing Confetti’s Café, a long-loved, privately owned sandwich shop that had become an important part of the culture at 301 W. Bay. Employees had become very attached to the café and it’s pleasant affect on the workday, and they voiced concern over losing a favorite place to read the paper or enjoy coffee and muffins in the morning. Koepke says that CSX listened closely to its employees and was intent on addressing their deepest concerns during the planning stages. “The Intermodal and Technology employees were anxious at the thought of losing easy access to the café,” says Koepke, “so, towards the end of construction CSX asked us to design a space for Confetti’s to address the concerns of the Intermodal and Technology

employees that would be moving to the 550 building. We were able to use some extra square footage left over on a non-CSX floor, and it became a very personal gesture on behalf of the employees.” Since the average employee at CSX has been with the company for about 20 years, Oatman adds “it was a relatively inexpensive solution with a tremendous amount of goodwill on the part of CSX.”

When it all comes together As one of the original designers of the workspace at 301 W. Bay, Oatman says her job 15 years ago was to implement someone else’s design ideas. “What was important to me about this project was seeing GS&P take care of this client over a period of many years and see our design team bring to fruition a space we have collectively been dreaming about. It’s exciting to see it happen!”

For Koepke, seeing how proud the employees are of the new space has been the most gratifying aspect of this project. “They preserve and take care of it, and they love to brag about it.” But she’s quick to point out that much of that credit should go to CSX. “The company really does empower employees. One of their core values is that people make the difference, and that every employee adds value.”

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Dynamic, fluid forms emphasize movement in the space. Transparency throughout design encourages collaboration.

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GS&P continues to provide design services at CSX’s headquarters, and has been in ongoing discussions about future additions and renovations. Oatman says one of the greatest compliments to the entire team recently came by way of a newly hired executive. “Last year they recruited a new VP of HR who is so intrigued by the design that she has already reached out to say that this is the direction she wants to go as she tries to recruit the next generation workforce.

Next year they are renovating the floor she works on, and where candidates will be brought in for interviews. Her experience and how she felt in her visits to 550 Water St. are so positive, she wants others to feel the same way about joining the company.”▪

team

Leith Oatman, LEED AP PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE / PROJECT MANAGER

Brooke Koepke, IIDA, LEED AP Project professional

Stephanie Irwin, IIDA, LEED AP Project designer

Carolyn Blake, IIDA, LEED AP Project coordinator

Karen Rebello, IIDA QUALITY ASSURANCE

Jill DeMarotta, IIDA, LEED AP LEED ADMINISTRATOR

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Dayton International Airport, Land Use and Development Options Plan

D

ayton International Airport is not only a convenient gateway to the world for business and leisure travelers alike, but is also a unique local resource that contributes significantly to the surrounding region’s prosperity. The city’s Department of Aviation recognized that innovative uses of airport property could potentially generate additional revenue for the airport and the city, attract business investment, create jobs and ultimately strengthen the region’s economy.

Achieving such goals required a clear and precise plan for the development of airport property that was not reserved for aviationrelated operations.

Dayton International Airport is a unique local resource that contributes significantly to the surrounding region’s prosperity. Teaming with GS&P, the city’s Department of Aviation commissioned a Land Use and Development Options Plan (LUDOP). The master plan would maximize the airport’s economic development potential by assessing three parcels of airport property, totaling approximately 650 acres, for the “highest and best” development options that would support the region’s economic growth.

Dayton officials turned to GS&P to help them chart a course toward maximizing the airport’s economic development potential by commissioning a Land Use and Development Options Plan (LUDOP). The plan’s scope was to assess three parcels of airport property, totaling approximately 650 acres, for the “highest and best” development options that would support the region’s economic growth.

Assessing the potential Dayton International Airport straddles two counties and borders four townships where a collective of civic leaders, businesses and citizens wanted to understand how the project would shape the region’s economic development for years to come. Realizing that sharing accurate and timely information was the best way to win support, the team held a series of meetings with stakeholders. In addition to the formal gatherings, the team also held open meetings every other week for more than a year.

The transparency of the information, along with the team’s willingness to listen patiently to

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Client

Location

City of Dayton, Department of Aviation

Dayton, Ohio

everyone’s point of view, earned the trust and buy-in of the surrounding communities and helped achieve the client’s goals.

state regulations to crime statistics in the area, as well as the patterns of business development and what could be forecast for the future.”

“Anybody could pop in,” says GS&P team member Mike Cochrane.

“Everybody was aware. Everyone had a voice. Everyone was heard, and they appreciated that.”

The potential for aviation-related development was assessed for each area based on the airport’s 20-year master plan and discussions with staff. Based on the identified constraints and the SWOT analysis, several bubble diagram development options were prepared for each area and were eventually developed into master development plans. The plans identified the development type, layout and square footage of each type of development.

For each of the three potential development areas, the project team — which included two real estate and economic consulting partners — performed SWOT analyses (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) and provided the client with detailed information regarding natural environments, environmental site concerns, utilities, zoning, land-use allocations, existing and planned transportation infrastructure, historical considerations, affected political districts and the presence of neighborhood associations. An environmental assessment (EA) was performed on all the properties, and the EA for the entire airport was updated. Issues that might impact the development plan were mitigated by the airport authority.

“The SWOT analyzed every conceivable issue that might affect the redevelopment of airport property,” says team member Mark Spalding. “Anything from local and

It was determined that Area 1 would include property adjacent to the taxiway that would be restricted to aeronautical-related uses.

Located near the terminal between Runway 13/31 and the main airport entrance, the final preferred development mix contains both aeronautical and non-aeronautical uses, and consists of aviation maintenance and cargo facilities, Class A office space, office-flex space, warehousing and retailcommercial areas.

Area 2 is close to the existing Fixed Base Operator (FBO) and has taxiway access. It will be focused on development tied

Market

Services

Land Planning

Engineering Civil Engineering Environmental Engineering

Master Planning Surveying Sustainability

“The LUDOP has quickly become a key item in the toolkit that Dayton’s economic development team uses,” says Spalding (above). “The master plan identifies the highest and best use of each of the three areas of the airport property and will guide the area’s growth for years to come.”

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For each of the three potential development areas, the project team — which included two real estate and economic consulting partners — performed SWOT analyses and provided the client with detailed information regarding natural environments, environmental site concerns, utilities, zoning, land-use allocations, existing and planned transportation infrastructure, historical considerations, affected political districts and the presence of neighborhood associations.

AREA 1: Located near the terminal between Runway 13/31 and the main airport entrance, the final preferred development mix of Area 1 contains both aeronautical and non-aeronautical uses, and consists of aviation maintenance and cargo facilities, Class A office space, office-flex space, warehousing and retail-commercial areas.

NON-AVITAION: Areas 1A and 1B are designated as mixed-use zones to support the adjacent Aviation area. Elements of the mixed-use amenities in areas 1A and 1B include a high-tech office park, and retail, warehouse and preserved open space.

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AREA 3: The team determined Area 3 would be best suited for aviation logistics and industrial uses. One of the initial key constraints identified for Area 3 was a lack of suitable access for industrial users. As a result of the final plan, the city is pursuing an intermodal hub north of the airport that will include rail service, as well as considerations for widening the roadway as a part of its 10-year transportation plan.

AREA 2: Close to the existing Fixed Base Operator (FBO) and with taxiway access, Area 2 will be focused on development tied to general aviation, including reserved space for corporate headquarters development and through-the-fence access to general aviation hangars.

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to general aviation, including reserved space for corporate headquarters development and through-the-fence access to general aviation hangars.

Area 3 is located in a more industrial area on the north side of the airport with access to Runway 18/36. The team determined it would be best suited for aviation logistics and industrial uses. One of the initial key constraints identified for Area 3 was a lack of suitable access for industrial users. As a result of the final plan, the city is pursuing an intermodal hub north of the airport that will include rail service, as well as considerations for widening the roadway as a part of its 10-year transportation plan.

The future — where idle spaces are transformed into corporate headquarters, Class A offices, retailing, new aviation-related activities, logistics and warehousing businesses, thoughtfully preserved green spaces and even a suggested high-tech office park — will look very different for Dayton International Airport.

“The LUDOP revealed that a hightech office park at the airport would be a logical development,” says Spalding. “That’s based on demographics, levels of education of the surrounding population and the types of industry that Dayton can support. The real

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beauty of the plan is its flexibility.

It envisions the presence of hightech businesses at the airport, but it doesn’t restrict the ability of economic development officials to recruit other tenants that would also be a good addition.”

“Each use will be in the area where it fits best. Aviation uses are near existing taxiways and runways.

Aviation logistics businesses and the intermodal industrial/ warehousing park will be in a preexisting industrial area away from the terminal. Corporate offices will be positioned for quick and easy access to the General Aviation area where private and business aircraft are hangared. And if corporate entities want through-the-gate access to their plane, they’ll have that,” adds Cochrane.

If you plan it, they will come GS&P also helped move the business recruitment process forward by working with a consultant to develop the marketing website that provides detailed information to businesses interested in investing at the airport. Numerous graphics and data from the LUDOP provide quick and concise information, and the efforts are already yielding significant results.

“If someone wants to select a site at the airport, they can pull the information and make an informed decision,” says Cochrane. “Hyatt is an example of that. When the hotel chain was making its decision about locating at the airport, information was available on the site, even before the study was 100 percent complete. Providing that level of information was a thoughtful convenience for decision makers, and the end result will benefit travelers and create new jobs and tax revenues for the city.”

From airlines and airport tenants to surrounding communities and business leaders, the team successfully demonstrated the LUDOP’s positive impact to the airport and the region, and in the process turned skeptics into supporters. GS&P is now part of the team selected to implement the phased plan in each of the three development areas.

“The LUDOP has quickly become a key item in the toolkit that Dayton’s economic development team uses when recruiting new and expanding businesses,” says Spalding. “The client wanted to know what would help them go into the future, and that’s what we proposed. The master plan identifies the highest and best use of each of the three areas of the airport property and will guide the area’s growth for years to come.”▪

Some of the graphics that were developed during the plan were utilized in individual marketing materials for the use of the DAY Business Development staff. The LUDOP was featured in the book Global Airport Cities, and the DAY LUDOP was one of the featured airports at the 2010 Airport Cities World Conference and Exhibition.

team

Michael A. Cochrane, P.E. PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE

Mark D. Spalding, P.E. PROJECT MANAGER

Michael Jenkinson, P.E., CPESC PROJECT PROFESSIONAL

Terence S. Mulvaney, RLA, CLARB ASSISTANT PLANNER

Bill Spalding CADD DESIGNER

Matthew L. Freudenthal CADD TECHNICIAN

Devon E. Seal, P.E. PROJECT ENGINEER

Jill N. Lukehart PROJECT PROFESSIONAL

Trey Rudolph, RLA additional

GS&P also helped move the business recruitment process forward by working with a consultant to develop the marketing website that provides detailed information to businesses interested in investing at the airport. Numerous graphics and data from the LUDOP provide quick and concise information, and the efforts are already yielding significant results.

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Dollar General Retail Store Program

m

ike Hunkler readily admits it.

Gresham, Smith and Partners’ ongoing work with a commercial developer that builds Dollar General stores isn’t architecturally glamorous. He knows it’s not common for engineering project management to be mentioned alongside more front-and-center architectural projects, but, that’s the fun and beauty of the work with Brentwood, Tennesseebased GBT Realty. It’s a continuous partnership that delivers practical — and critical — results for the client in a big way, and the elegance of the project is in its behind-the-scenes efficiency.

Dollar General currently builds approximately 600 stores each year, with an ultimate goal of 20,000.

12,000 stores are expected by the end of 2012.

Client

Location

GBT Realty Corporation

Various, USA

GBT Realty approached GS&P with the goal of becoming the highest volume preferred developer for Dollar General in the United States. The GS&P team’s role was to solve one of the project’s biggest dilemmas: figuring out how to create a flexible but highly detailed site design process that could flow as fast as humanly possible amidst a complicated array of preconstruction demands.

publically-traded corporation, headquartered in Goodlettsville, Tennessee, employs over 90,000 people in 40 states, and is on track to have 12,000 stores by the end of 2012. The company’s long-term growth goal is equally impressive.

They currently build over 600 stores a year (an average of approximately three store openings every two days), with an ultimate goal of 20,000 stores.

“Our client’s biggest ongoing challenge was to keep store openings on schedule and within budgets set prior to our involvement in the site design,” says Hunkler, professional engineer and Dollar General Principal-inCharge. “GBT needed to deliver a cost-effective site design that fell within the original lease terms of Dollar General. We became GBT’s civil engineer on multiple projects happening simultaneously and on very fast-paced schedules. Our goal was to complete a set of site development construction and bid drawings for the initial permitting submittal within two weeks of our notice to proceed. It was, and is, multitasking on steroids.”

A standard Dollar General store takes about three months to build, but the due diligence period leading up to construction can take triple that amount of time or more. GS&P’s role is to organize, streamline and optimize the constant flow of pre-construction challenges and pressures.

landscaping on approximately one acre of land. At least 25 percent of the sites don’t have the required space needed or are oddly shaped, which inevitably means going through local officials to get a variance. For instance, it can be difficult to determine the best location for an entrance and adequate parking spaces, while also allowing room for a large truck to make deliveries. Although the GS&P team never changes the basic architecture of a Dollar General building, they modify certain aspects of the prototype design to accommodate the unique challenges of each site.

Finding solutions on a fast timeline Dollar General is experiencing staggering growth. The

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“There are so many demands during the site planning and preconstruction phase,” Hunkler says.

“Some of the biggest have to do with location and jurisdiction. We help our client navigate through a variety of agencies peculiar to specific sites. They may include city planning commissions, city councils, townships and county governments, departments of transportation and state environmental agencies.”

The typical site contains a preengineered store building with parking for 30 cars, truck access, storm water management, and

“The engineering from the property line to the face of the building differs a lot from project to project because no two pieces of property are ever the same,” explains Dylan Tarr, civil engineer and project manager. “We adjust our design approach on each project according to lot size, lot shape, utility locations, topography and any of the many other design restrictions or requirements that come along.”

Storm water and drainage problems are another example of a common pre-construction dilemma. Soil types and conditions vary widely and can require everything from a straightforward solution to a more complicated resolution such as placing

Market

Services

Land Planning

Engineering Landscape Architecture Civil Engineering Surveying

The typical site contains a pre-engineered store building with parking for 30 cars, truck access, storm water management and landscaping.

“...multiple projects happening simultaneously and on very fast-paced schedules...It was, and is, multitasking on steroids,� says Hunkler.

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drainage areas in high grass or in underground holding ponds.

“Municipal requirements, and our proposed solutions, for storm water quantity and quality vary significantly from site to site,” Tarr says. “It can be a substantial issue, and we have to grapple with it for the majority of our sites to some extent as we work toward a solid, approvable design.”

A unified team A Dollar General project, always in the process of unfolding and evolving, requires a flexible, mentally nimble and highly unified team. In this case, it took time for a cohesive internal group to solidify, but the final team is a diverse group who feel comfortable with the extreme level of multitasking and hyperattention required to stay on top of the project at all times.

“It takes a certain demeanor and mindset,” explains Hunkler.

“It takes a willingness to be autonomous. A lot of decisions rest on your shoulders, but there is a lot of satisfaction in knowing you are steering the truck. When all is said and done, I think our intricate teamwork is the key to the continuing success of this project.”

The GS&P Dollar General team typically consists of about 22 engineers, landscape architects and technicians in total, working on up to 50 projects at a time.

Hunkler is proud of his staff and says team members are highly

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committed and able to move with precision and speed. They must also be ready to communicate with external team members at a moment’s notice — from architects to environmental engineers to land surveyors.

“There’s a special talent necessary to gain these approvals concurrently with each other and in locations where we’ve had no previous project experience,” says Hunkler. “With the pace and number of projects required, adherence to a quality control process is important, and clocklike teamwork is essential.

Everything has to happen in a sequence and it can’t be done out of order.”

In the process of managing the demands of the Dollar General project, the GS&P team created a comprehensive checklist for team members to use at every step. It has become an invaluable problem-solving tool that’s essential to keeping the project on track and free of costly errors and omissions. Although having the checklist may seem like a simple part of the project, Hunkler reiterates it’s a detailed tabulation containing many of the lessons learned over time by the team. It consists of over 90 key points, most of which are highly technical and directly related to dozens of tasks that have to be performed before the box can be checked.

“Everyone is touching so many projects simultaneously,” Hunkler says. “The more we got into this, the more we realized we needed tools to turn to. The checklist is

“It takes a willingness to be autonomous,” says Hunkler. “A lot of decisions rest on your shoulders, but there is a lot of satisfaction in knowing you are steering the truck.”

A comprehensive checklist is used at every step to allow the team to move through quality control with precision and speed.

Each project is engineered differently based on lot size, shape, utilities, topography, storm water and other unique factors.

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one of them, but there are others.

Our clear lines of communications with the team, and with people involved externally — city officials, architects, surveyors, planners — are tools we fine-tuned over time, almost to an art.”

Measure of success Hunkler says he knows the Dollar General work is successful because of the client’s feedback, including the fact that workload continues to grow. Over a period of three years the account has soared with over 280 sites designed, approximately 230 stores either open or under construction, and another 40 in various stages of development.

With the GS&P team guiding the pre-construction process, GBT now averages 80-100 stores a year and is the highest volume preferred developer of Dollar General Stores in the country.

“GBT has a choice in site design consultants; they don’t have to go with us,” says Hunkler. “They’ve tried others, but quickly came back.”

Another key proof of the project’s success lies in GS&P’s record of quality.

“We have written zero design error and omission checks,” Hunker proudly says. “The discipline required to follow our project management process, as well as the design and agency lessons learned from working across the nation with every conceivable government review entity, has had far reaching positive results in all aspects of our

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site design process in the Nashville Land Planning Division.

“Our work with Dollar General may not be ‘high architecture’,” Hunkler adds, “but it definitely has its own merit. With a project like this, you might not have that pleasing trophy design, but you have the satisfaction of knowing you’ve helped the client be extremely successful with a process that’s very demanding and complicated.

This project is about the details people don’t see, but have to be accomplished. It has a lot of hidden secrets — a lot we are proud of.”▪

team

Michael D. Hunkler, P.E., LEED AP PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE

Joseph A. Johnston project manager

Dylan Tarr, P.E. PROJECT coordinator

Terence S. Mulvaney, RLA, CLARB Project Designer

Bruce K. Dretchen Sarah Holley, P.E. Michael Jenkinson, P.E., CPESC Bill Spalding Kevin Eakes Jubal Parris Lisa Kennedy Dustin Briggs Matthew L. Freudenthal Curtis Smith, P.E., LEED AP BD+C Kenneth Church, RLS John Campbell Thomas G. Martin Rob Whitson, P.E. Robert Keeling ADDITIONAL

“Our work with Dollar General may not be ‘high architecture,’” Hunkler adds “but you have the satisfaction of knowing you’ve helped the client be extremely successful.”

Maps posted in the design team's studio indicate current GS&P Dollar General projects in Ohio and Pennsylvania.

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Gerald R. Ford International Airport, Terminal Area and Parking Improvements

G

rand Rapids, Michigan, is often called the gateway to western Michigan. The 13-county metro area has grown at a 40-percent rate in the past decade, and has garnered an increasing amount of national and international attention for its diverse economy, vibrant downtown district and close proximity to Lake Michigan vacation spots. Airport professionals and business leaders had a long-held vision of upgrading the Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GFIA) with radically improved parking solutions and a redeveloped terminal area. Inadequate parking at GFIA was a major problem despite the airport being Michigan’s second busiest.

The parking dilemma was far more problematic than just having a shortage of spaces; it was also about quality, convenience and safety.

“This area of Michigan gets 84 inches of snow a year, but despite this fact, the airport had no covered parking,” says Principal-in-Charge Al Pramuk.

“The airport was experiencing ever-increasing demands for a higher level of service from passengers. Improvements were desperately needed.”

In 2004, Gresham, Smith and Partners began working with several airport stakeholders including the Kent County Department of Aeronautics, the airport’s board of directors and a community advisory committee. Over time, the group composed a list of comprehensive and clearly designed goals for what was to become the Gerald R. Ford International Airport Terminal Area and Parking Improvement Project. The project included a new 4,900-space, four-story parking deck, terminal improvements — including pedestrian sky bridges — a covered roadway canopy for arrivals, departures and dropoffs, replacement of underground utilities and roadway surfaces.

When the project went out for bid in September of 2007, the Grand Rapids community was ready.

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Client

Location

Kent County Department of Aeronautics

Grand Rapids, Michigan

“We want this to be a showcase facility that is going to be here for 50 years or more, so we said ‘let’s do this right,’’’ said James Koslosky, executive director of the Kent County Department of Aeronautics. Koslosky called the project “the most significant in the airport’s history.”

and ideals into reality would require thought leadership.

A grand idea Stakeholders wanted more than a strong statement for the GFIA improvement project. They wanted it to leave an iconic impression on visitors and passengers. They wanted it to honor the area’s rich history and promising future.

“In many ways this was the best kind of scenario for us,” Pramuk says. “You don’t get many chances to work with a client this determined to see their vision realized. You don’t often get the opportunity to design a project with this much promise to become iconic on such a large scale.”

The GS&P team worked in tandem with the community leaders to find an overarching concept for the project. There was already a strong desire for design solutions that highlighted individual characteristics of the area, but translating visions, values, dreams

“It was very important not to define the design on our own,” Pramuk says. “We conducted two-day work sessions with stakeholders and really worked diligently to get everyone to focus on areas of importance. Nothing is the result of one person’s idea; it was a collaboration of main themes that emerged from the entire group.”

In the end, there was a broad agreement about several factors: the project would need to highlight the influence of nature and nearby Lake Michigan, emphasize the historic ambiance of the revitalized downtown Grand Rapids, and reinforce the region’s strong economic growth.

One of the most significant challenges was coming up with a design solution that would provide sufficient parking within reasonable walking distance of the main terminal, and provide shelter and protection from the weather. Not only did the new parking garage need to be covered, the access areas between the garage and terminal demanded coverage as well. The final solution was to design and build a massive “Grand Canopy”: a 140-feet wide, 600foot long canopy made of glass and steel. Designed in the shape

Market

Services

Awards

Aviation

Architecture Civil Engineering Structural Engineering Mechanical Engineering Plumbing Engineering Signage/Graphics

2010 ABC of Western Michigan Parking Ramp Construction Award Winner 2011 American Graphic Design and Advertising - Environmental Graphics and Signage

ABOVE: The new parking structure and iconic “Main Street� improvements serve as shelter from heavy annual snowfall and leave a lasting impression on visitors.

LEFT: The project included a new 4,900-space, fourstory parking deck, extensive terminal improvements, pedestrian sky bridges, a covered roadway canopy for arrivals, departures and dropoffs, and new utilities and roadway infrastructure.

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A new image was created for the airport by developing a consistent look that tied the garage, landscape and streetscape to the terminal curbside. Prominent elements include a helical entrance ramp, superior lighting and wayfinding signage.

A welcome wall serves as the centerpiece of the regionally-inspired “Main Street.�

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of a rolling wave — or even of a large sand dune so familiar to the region — the canopy suggests the importance of Lake Michigan to the area and serves as a dominant signature element. Tinted light blue to suggest the color of water, the sculptured cover elegantly connects the terminal and parking garage, and provides a protected area of curbside operations and pedestrian circulation between the garage and the terminal.

“The flowing form of the Grand Canopy is the signature element for the entire airport,” says Pramuk.

“It’s the dominating image for those arriving and departing. The curved nature of the canopy blends in with the four-story parking deck and the one-story terminal in a way that doesn’t dwarf the terminal. It works with the parking deck to turn a bustling, successful airport into the gateway to western Michigan.”

The canopy’s design presented unique engineering challenges for the team not only because of its immense size, but also because of the stress it would encounter under western Michigan’s high snowfall amounts. The designed snow load was based on an average snowfall of about 24 inches, and because of the canopy’s shape, the team approximated drifts up to five feet in some areas. The anticipated

...need to highlight the influence of nature and nearby Lake Michigan, emphasize the historic ambiance of the revitalized downtown Grand Rapids, and suggest and reinforce the region’s strong economic growth.

weight equates to a load of almost 170 pounds per square foot.

Careful phasing, precision planning

“We had the foresight to include steel fabricators and glass manufacturers from the very beginning,” explains David Chesak, senior structural engineer on the project, “so as the design progressed they were able to advise and confirm our specifications.

We knew the design would not only collect snow and ice, but the unique shape is susceptible to larger snow drifts, and therefore, more pressure per square foot.

Local codes provided general guidelines, but the one-of-a-kind structure required that we think beyond them.”

With no flexibility in timeline, and without interrupting service or seriously degrading the passenger experience, the project would need to be completed in two years. As a result, the technical challenges were substantial, not only because of extreme cold, snow, ice and challenging soil conditions, but because of the complications of successfully erecting massive construction materials without disrupting service.

“The finished structure is easily strong enough to park cars on top, a fact I was happy to repeat each time I was asked, ‘Is it strong enough?’” Chesak states with a grin.

“The canopy erection, which included the lifting of 19-ton trusses, started early each Sunday morning for 13 weeks after clearing the runway of the last plane, and the baggage area of the last passenger,” Pramuk says. “The construction team had a window from midnight to 4 a.m.”

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A covered pedestrian bridge spanning from the parking deck to the terminal provides a protected walk.

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It was also critical not to disrupt curbside operations. Frequent shuttle buses helped passengers get from place to place, depending on the construction demands of the day. And at the northern portion of the new parking structure, the contractor constructed temporary curbside roadways and shelters. Once the temporary curbside was completed, operations were shifted to the new location overnight and work began on the Grand Canopy.

“It was a challenge to maintain the level of service, but we were able to address it very well and consistently maintain a good experience for visitors,” Pramuk says. “Both advanced and flexible planning were a part of the game plan. As the team kept moving down the line, they were affecting a different group of people, and a different area of the terminal. Everything had to be right — and it was.”

Main Street appeal and elegant integration Providing a “Main Street” curbside environment that could blend in well with the structure of the Grand

Canopy emerged as a primary strategy. The centerpiece of the Main Street theme in the curbside area is a large “Welcome Wall” that features vibrant images of attractions and events in western Michigan, including video images of Lake Michigan and historic downtown Grand Rapids. Jeff Kuhnhenn, project designer, says the wall provides an immediate sense of place for visitors, as does the integration of orange and tan terracotta cladding along the road, near the front of the terminal and around the sides of ramps.

“The terracotta cladding was a contemporary experience of the historic brick building in downtown Grand Rapids,” Kuhnhenn says.

“It was very important to the stakeholders that this element be included, even though it added some expense. It shows you how important local history is to them, and how much they wanted to do more than just make a statement about the future. They wanted to honor the past and face the future with boundless optimism.”

Extensive streetscaping and landscaping throughout the curbside area also contributed to the Main Street appeal of the project.

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Enclosed connections between parking and the terminal were necessary in Grand Rapid’s cold weather.

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“We treated the curbside areas as a courtyard and a boulevard rather than a road,” Kuhnhenn explains.

“The curbside was to be an extension of the terminal and the garage. It was important to make it a seamless, convenient passage from one to the other.”

Pedestrian convenience, which included protection from rain and snow, also had a strong connection to the Main Street experience. The parking deck, passenger terminal and new curbside functions had to be easy to navigate and provide maximum passenger convenience.

Covered pedestrian bridges that spanned from the parking deck to

the terminal provided a protected, elevated walk to the parking area.

Final impressions As soon as the GFIA project was completed in 2009, there was positive response from airport officials and residents of the Grand Rapids metro area. The covered

parking area was immediately filled in the first week after opening, and airport officials report over 567,000 parked vehicles annually. Traffic at the airport reached a new high in 2011 with more than 2,275,000 passengers reported. The airport has maintained its status as the second busiest in Michigan.

The community is also proud of the fiscally responsible manner in

“The facility is very welcoming and truly offers a gateway image for western Michigan,” says Airport official Koslosky.

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2

1

3

1. The trusses were manufactured and delivered in three sections.

Once on site, the three sections of shop-fabricated steel were welded together using engineered jigs built in the shop. Accuracy of the jigs was vital to achieve perfect alignment.

2. For 13 weeks, every Sunday morning, between 12 a.m. and 4 a.m., the 19-ton trusses were lifted into place.

3. The project team prepared a new diagram and action plan for each truss lift. Each plan plotted the position of the lifting cranes and the jigs, and how construction affected staff and passenger circulation.

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The canopy's dramatic rolling wave is suggestive of nearby Lake Michigan.

which the project was managed.

The GS&P team designed energy efficiency into every aspect of the project, which helped win tax credits and deductions. Financing of the project was self-supporting and required no funding from property taxes or general funds.

The improvements at GFIA were popular in the blogosphere as well.

“We now have a modern, state-ofthe-art terminal,” Koslosky says.

“The facility is very welcoming and truly offers a gateway image for western Michigan.”

“What a pleasant surprise the airport was with its Great Canopy and Welcome Wall lit at night,” wrote a late-night blogger who was traveling at 10 p.m.

“They really wanted this project,” Pramuk says. “You have an impressive level of commitment and investment coupled with sustained collaboration and communication over a long period of time between all the various stakeholders. It’s not surprising to see such satisfying results.”▪

Airport official Koslosky says the community embraced the project with open arms.

Pramuk gives credit to his GS&P team, many of whom made frequent trips to Grand Rapids, and to the Grand Rapids community.

team

Alan J. Pramuk, P.E., C.M. PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE

Kevin Kim, AIA Project designer

Jeffrey W. Kuhnhenn, AIA, LEED AP Project designer

Sam Lin Project Designer

John David Chesak, P.E. STRUCTURAL ENGINEER

Jim Alderman, SEGD ENVIRONMENTAL GRAPHICS DESIGNER

Jeff Behel PROJECT INSPECTOR

James R. Wilson, P.E., LEED AP Mechanical Engineer

Ron Gipe Roadway Lighting

Jon D. Long, P.E., LEED AP Electrical Engineer

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Grimes Bridge Road at Warsaw Road/ Norcross Street Roundabout

he Norcross Street and Warsaw Road intersection with Grimes Bridge

Road and Melody Lane in Roswell, Georgia, had become a nightmare for drivers – a focal point of confusion, frustration and danger. The existing signalized intersection shuffled approximately 28,000 vehicles per day with a single approach and dedicated left-turn lane, drivers experienced lengthy delays during peak hours, and the number of crashes had increased dramatically over the years. The City of Roswell was acutely aware of the strain the intersection had placed on the community, and hired GS&P to develop a plan to control and direct the flow of traffic.

When the City of Roswell and the design team recommended an innovative solution — a five-legged roundabout at the center of the intersection — they heard from a community that was diametrically opposed to the new plan. It was up to GS&P to prove the worth of their design and assure the citizens and stakeholders that a roundabout would not only provide the solution they needed, but would also become an aesthetically beautiful model for future traffic solutions in the area.

Setting the Scene Since many team members were also residents of Roswell, they were familiar with the intersection and were eager to find a solution. “There are about four different ways I can go from the office to my house,” says Brian O’Connor, project engineer.

“When I first started working at GS&P I would go through that intersection, but it got so bad at rush hour that I found another way.” According to O’Connor, the lack of left-turn lanes was a major issue. “You’d just sit and wait for people to make a left turn,” he says. And he wasn’t alone.

Team member Jay Bockisch, traffic engineer, says he also avoided the area because it wasn’t safe. “It was one of the top locations for crashes

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Client

Location

City of Roswell Transportation Department

Roswell, GA - USA

in the City. The City of Roswell wasn’t just looking for capacity improvements, they wanted to improve safety.”

Sometime between the first and second meetings misinformation about the project was posted on a private website, which prompted the door-to-door circulation of a petition against the roundabout. “They had a list of things about roundabouts that were either completely incorrect or up for discussion,” Braswell says. More fuel was added when a local paper printed a scathing article against the roundabout.

“It’s funny,” he says. “Very few people attended the first public open house, but after word got around, there were a couple hundred people at the second.”

Jody Braswell, project manager, explains that the team looked at several different alternatives.

“Once we, the Roswell DOT and the City Council had a preferred solution for the project, we conducted a public information open house. At the meeting, the design team and council members had the opportunity to explain all the options including traditional intersection improvements with dedicated left- and right-turn lanes, and a four-legged roundabout.

The team listened to input from participants and addressed their concerns. Very few people attended the public meeting and the team moved forward.” But not for long.

Public Outcry According to Bockisch, “When the City started the process of purchasing right-of-way, citizens approached the council complaining that they didn’t know anything about the new plan and wanted to know what was going on.” As a result of the opposition, Bockisch says the City felt it needed to go back to the public again and a second public open house was scheduled.

The team admits it learned a few things after the first meeting. The second time around, Braswell says the City of Roswell asked them to develop renderings of the roundabout, and the City even created a new brochure, How to Navigate a Roundabout. “We also created an animation of what it would look like if you were driving through it. We all think that the graphics went a long way in helping to support the project.”

In addition, the City created a six-page document of roundabout questions and answers addressing all of the concerns raised in the petition. A two-page roundabout fact sheet to accompany the navigation brochure was also distributed. The documents were

Market

Services

Awards

Transportation

Engineering Landscape Architecture Traffic Modeling Transportation Engineering

2011 GPTQ - Best Innovative Solution Project Design 2012 ACEC - Honor Award

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© 2008 Google

posted to the City’s website and hand delivered to 240 residences in the area. Through this process, the City was able to better inform and engage the public on the benefits of the project and the roundabout.

“Not long after the second meeting, the incorrect information went away,” says Bockisch.

The Solution Originally, the team designed a four-legged roundabout.

But residents adjacent to the intersection objected to the realignment of Melody Lane, so the concept was revised to accommodate Melody Lane within the roundabout.

The result was somewhat unique and a first for the team — a fivelegged roundabout. “This was a very unique situation because there are very few intersections where five roads intersect, and therefore there aren’t many five-legged

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roundabouts,” Bockisch says.

Resident skepticism continued, “but we were able to show them that roundabouts would do the most to improve safety because they do two things: they reduce speed through the intersection and they reduce the number of conflict points,” he explains. The number of conflict points are reduced simply because there are no left turns against oncoming traffic, a key contributor to accidents at traditional intersections.

Though the new solution was primarily focused on safety, aesthetics were also very important to the City of Roswell because of the close proximity to residential areas. The renderings and models demonstrated the aesthetic qualities of the project from the beginning, and Braswell adds that the City wouldn’t have been as excited about the roundabout if it was simply functional. “It was important to the City that it look as good as it performs.

They wanted it to not only help

traffic, but also improve the appearance of the community.”

There were a few compromises along the way. “When we first started looking at the area, we knew there would be some constraints that would be an issue — we had a big tree and a church on the opposite corner, and a house that was fairly close to it that belonged to an elderly woman,” says Bockisch.

Plus, the original four-legged concept connected the roundabout via a large piece of property that held a lot of fruit trees.

So, they took another look. “To help ease the anxiety of the property owner and the neighborhood, we moved the connection that tied in south of the intersection so that it actually tied into the roundabout.”

The area was small with about 20 houses, but Braswell explains that it was the best solution to improve safety in and out of the neighborhood, and also keep as many environmental elements intact as possible.

Opposite: The existing intersection and its odd configuration had become extremely congested during peak hours, and was one of the most accident-prone in the community.

LEFT: Several alternative solutions were presented to Roswell DOT and the City Council.

BELOW: The final solution, a five-legged, single-lane roundabout, was selected due to the anticipated reduction in number and severity of accidents, the low environmental impacts and the duration of construction and benefit/cost ratio.

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To minimize the impact to the fruit trees, the roundabout was centered slightly west of the original intersection. “We wanted to protect the large tree on the corner, so we made sure that we didn’t do anything that would damage it,” explains Sarah Worachek, project engineer. “We also added a landscaping plan to the center island to make it more aesthetically pleasing.”

Bockisch is very pleased with the outcome. “It turned out great.

The original roundabout design was placed right on the center of the existing intersection, which would have taken out the tree and impacted more property.

Instead, we slid the whole thing away from the tree and recentered the entire roundabout based on that new location.”

The team is also very happy about the way they worked with the family of the elderly woman.

According to Braswell, “The woman who lived there was 103 years old.

When her son heard about the project he went to the local NBC news affiliate and talked about how bad it was going to be, and how it was going to impact her quality of life in her remaining years.” Braswell says that the City of Roswell talked to the family and agreed to purchase the house and allow the woman to stay in the home as long as she lived. “They also built a fence between the road and her house, and included

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landscaping with ferns and trees to shield them from traffic.”

A lasting impression Some of the same design elements that make the roundabout aesthetically pleasing also contribute to its sustainability.

Although not one of the original overarching goals, Bockisch says the Grimes Bridge project turned out to be very sustainable and environmentally friendly. “We were able to preserve natural resources, save trees and incorporate a water runoff drainage system. In addition, we made it neighborhood friendly by adding adequate sidewalks and a bike lane.” Bockisch is a regular blogger who focuses on sustainability innovations and initiatives, and points out that “Roswell has an official Complete Streets Policy

transit buses and pedestrians and public green space into transportation design.

Braswell is particularly proud of the roundabout’s sidewalk system.

“Sidewalks connect pedestrians to other areas of the community,” he says. “There’s a church down the road and some shops and restaurants close by, and we tied them all together within walking distance.” Because the City is so tied to the community, he says the team is helping the City develop other sustainability ideas. “We’ve helped them see what they are already doing and worked to enhance it. For instance, they are very much a biking community, which is a big part of sustainability and the Complete Streets movement.”

In fact, Roswell’s mayor rides his bike to work, and the City has a big initiative to make its roads as

“...we were able to set the model for future roundabouts all over the region,” says O’Connor, “and make it safer for the traveling public; including me.” that states that streets are for all modes of transportation, and are not just for vehicles.” The Complete Street concept continues to gain national attention for its goal to accommodate vehicles, bicycles,

pedestrian and biker friendly as possible. “We’ve actually already done five sidewalk projects and linked together sections of sidewalks that were missing before and repaired sidewalks throughout

Great efforts were made to construct the roundabout with as little disturbance to the surrounding land and community as possible. Traffic continued to flow through the intersection during all phases of construction.

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the City,” says Braswell. “Roswell even did some enhancements to a bridge by adding sidewalks and narrowing the median to make it more pedestrian friendly. They’re definitely doing what they can.”

Teachable moments Since its opening in June, the City has received overwhelmingly positive responses from the public. The success of this project has given the City the confidence to propose roundabouts at other locations throughout the City of Roswell, Fulton County and the state of Georgia.

There were many lessons learned that the team will carry over to future projects. “I continue to learn that people really don’t like drastic change,” Braswell says. “But, if you’re able to show them how it’s going to work, and elected officials have the courage to work with them, it can make all the difference.”

This project also demonstrates the importance of a comparative analysis. “Make sure that when we make changes, we have true buyin from the community,” advises Bockisch. “We can’t just assume that because no one is at the meeting, they are all for it.”

For future projects involving community input, O’Connor recommends communicating directly with area residents. “We’ll at least suggest sending individual mailers to people living in close proximity to the project to get more people to come to the public open house so they can’t come back during the right-of-way phase and say they never heard anything about it.” O’Connor says that had

he known about the retirement community down the road from the roundabout, the team would have reached out to them to make sure they were educated on the new intersection. “We had all those educational materials at the second public hearing, but not at the first.

That’s the kind of thing we need to look at and incorporate early.”

The best part

Team

The team agrees that the Grimes Bridge project has been gratifying on many levels. As residents, they’re happy to have a major problem solved. As professionals, it’s very fulfilling to actually be part of a solution that benefits so many. And they are especially proud to have had a hand in the first roundabout of its kind in the Roswell area.

Kent Black, P.E.

For Worachek, the whole design was amazing. “This was the first project that I got to be the lead design engineer. The roundabout is very close to where I work and live, and I still use it multiple times every month. To lead the design and tell people I was part of it is really gratifying.”

Jay Bockisch, P.E., PTOE

PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE

Jody A. Braswell, P.E. Project manager

Brian G. O’Connor, P.E. PROJECT PROFESSIONAL

Sarah E. Worachek, EIT PROJECT ENGINEER

TRAFFIC ENGINEER

Ron Gipe LIGHTING ENGINEER

Terence S. Mulvaney, RLA, CLARB LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT

Braswell is simply happy to have an easier and safer commute. “To hear and see the reactions of the citizens and council members after it was done, and to see how much of a 180 everybody did from being absolutely opposed to it early on, to thinking it was great afterwards, is truly great. I live in Roswell and also go through it pretty frequently — it’s good to see it working well at rush hour. I’m especially glad that we were able to set the model for future roundabouts all over the region and make it safer for the traveling public; including me.”▪

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BEFORE

Hotel Indigo

ashville’s downtown enjoyed a rebirth in the mid- to late-2000s, but up until that time, many of the historic properties in the city’s central downtown area were underutilized, often empty and usually in some state of deterioration.

The urban Renaissance resulted in the conversion of many historic buildings into condos, apartments, art galleries, offices and boutiques. But even as downtown renewal reached a peak, two iconic turnof-the-century bank buildings — American Trust Bank and Nashville Trust Bank — remained vacant. Patrick Gilbert, a GS&P senior architect, knew the classic old banks well, and like a growing number of Nashvillians, was frustrated by their dormant state.

Though the 315 Building still had most of the two-story banking lobby intact, various small rooms had been constructed and encroached into the space. Small rooms were removed, original marble flooring was uncovered and moldings were repaired. An oversized, curved wall inspired by Hotel Indigo’s nautilus icon separates the reception desk from the restaurant.

Gilbert had worked alongside 10 developers for more than a decade trying to design an economically feasible way to repurpose one of the buildings, the American Trust Bank at 301 Union St. The proposals, however, never worked out, mostly because the bank building was somewhat quirky — tall and skinny with relatively small spaces, and only about 4,000 square feet per floor. He was also aware of the underuse of the neighboring building, the Nashville Trust Building at 315 Union St. Although there had been tenants over the years, the building eventually ended up being vacant on the most visible first few floors. The old bank had strong bones, but much of its character was obscured by cheap build-outs and decorative features that hadn’t been changed since the 1980s.

Rather than be discouraged by the state of the old buildings, and the history of failed redevelopment attempts, Gilbert stayed optimistic and kept his eye on the future.

“I was determined to at least get the 301 building renovated during my career,” Gilbert says. “I always thought it was the grandest unrenovated building in the city.

I considered it a life challenge to make sure something happened.”

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Client

Location

Union Street Plaza Partners

Nashville, Tennessee

Two buildings, several challenges

on the exterior and relocating one stairwell to the exterior of the building.

In 2007, an 11th developer entered the picture and purchased both bank buildings and an adjacent parking garage. With three structures to work with, new possibilities began to emerge.

Gilbert and the GS&P team worked with the new developer on a proposal for Hotel Indigo, a 97-room boutique hotel, bar and restaurant with retail space that included Starbucks and an art gallery.

Not unlike previous renovation attempts, the newly envisioned hotel presented fundamental challenges that put into question the viability of the project. With only 4,000 square feet per floor and space for only six guest rooms per floor, the buildings were short of the necessary rooms to keep the project feasible. Since adding extra rooms was critical, it was one of the first things the team tackled.

“We simply had to find more square footage,” Gilbert says.

The team squeezed out more space for one additional guest room per floor by repurposing one elevator shaft for laundry and trash, constructing all mechanical shafts

“Once we realized what we could do to get a little extra space, everything fell into place fairly quickly,” says Project Coordinator Bill Mays. “Our modifications reduced the common area to 17 percent of the floor and allowed the design team to gain enough square footage to add an additional guest room per floor.

This increased the room count by 12 percent, which is exactly what the owner needed.”

The decision to construct a stairway on the outside of the building presented a two-pronged challenge.

First, the extremely limited space posed potential codes concerns, an issue mitigated with creative assistance from Nashville’s Metro Codes Department. Second, it was difficult to design a stairwell that blended well, but not too well, with the rest of the building.

“It really was one of our biggest challenges,” Mays says. “The stairwell, railings and all, just meet the minimum requirements for the space. And because the solution moved the stairwell to the exterior, the Historical Commission required that it be clearly distinct from the original architecture.

Market

Services

Awards

Corporate+Urban Design

Architecture Civil Engineering

2010 Historical Commission of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County - Historic Preservation Award 2011 Nashville Urban Land Institute Excellence in Development Award

By imploring innovative design solutions, the 301 and 315 Union buildings, which once served as status symbols and landmarks of the Nashville skyline, have been successfully renovated to meet their modern use.

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We were operating under a lot of restrictions, primarily because the buildings are in both an overlay district and a historic district, and had to go back to the drawing board several times.”

One of the more perplexing problems of the rehabilitation was directly tied to the colorful history of the buildings. American Trust was erected first in 1909, originally as a five-story building. When the owner of Nashville Trust decided to build his 15-story structure next door in 1925, American Trust felt compelled to compete.

“American Trust wasn’t going to be overshadowed by their rival, so they almost immediately made plans to add 10 stories to their building,” Gilbert says. “And in addition to trying to win the height battle, the owner of 315 [Nashville Trust] instructed his architect to design the elevator bank against the common wall and to misalign all the floors. Despite being nextdoor neighbors, they tried their best to turn their backs and outdo one another.”

With elevators back-to-back, and floors that were mismatched by several feet in some cases, it was initially unclear how to connect the buildings. The team discovered that on three of the 15 levels, the floor-to-floor misalignments were

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considerably less severe and could be connected with subtle ramps, thus disguising the incongruent floors on the first, second and basement levels, and the adjacent parking garage. An existing telephone room and electrical room had to be relocated, but the end result was an easy pathway to and from each building and the parking garage.

“It’s invisible to the guests,” Gilbert says. “You don’t even know you are moving from one building to the next.”

Honoring history It was undeniable that the American Trust and Nashville Trust bank buildings had historical significance, but the GS&P team had to prioritize and make decisions about what to

assessment of the structures was required — every patch of floor and ceiling, every square inch of space, from the basement to the laundry closets. The team listed the major historic elements and then addressed them in order of importance. First and foremost, it was important to preserve the exterior facades of the buildings and make sure they stood out visually. That meant cleaning, painting and polishing the buildings, a task that hadn’t been carried out for decades. Accent lighting was added to the exterior to make the buildings more prominent at night and easier for hotel guests to find.

Returning both aging bank lobbies to their original splendor represented another daunting, yet critical task.

“Retaining the character of the lobbies was absolutely central to

“[The connector is] invisible to guests,” Gilbert says.

“You don’t even know you are moving from one building to the next.” preserve based on factors such as degree of importance and financial feasibility. A meticulous

putting a historic stamp on the hotel,” Gilbert says “The lobbies are the first thing you see when you

Both bank buildings and an adjacent parking garage were purchased by the developer in 2007.

Connecting the three buildings posed a challenge. Floors were misaligned, and an elevator bank was built against the common wall.

The two buildings were successfully connected by relocating an existing electrical room and designing subtle ramping to account for different floor heights.

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BEFORE

The original two-story banking lobby in the 301 building had been infilled during a previous renovation. The team decided to revert the 301 lobby back to its original two-story space, and it is currently leased to a Starbucks franchise.

walk in, and you expect a grand space. It was very important to keep the proportions true to the original.”

The original two-story lobby in the American Trust building was full of surprises. A previous owner had floored over the two-story space in an attempt to add offices on the second floor, and to the casual observer it looked like an abandoned floor of old offices with a low, dingy ceiling and poor lighting. Beneath it all was a magnificent Jazz Era bank lobby with grand columns, marble floor and a breathtaking interior view.

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“Someone had attempted a poorly conceived renovation and had stopped in mid-stream,” Gilbert says. “It was an odd combination of fresh paint adjacent to total chaos.

The design team understood that recreating the original proportions of the historic two-story bank lobby was more important than the small amount of square footage that had been created.

The result was a dramatic twostory retail space that quickly leased to a Starbucks franchise.”

Walking into the old Nashville Trust bank lobby was another step back in time, as various small

rooms and additions encroached into the space, and the décor conjured the 1980s from floor to ceiling. The team solved much of the problem by demolishing the encroachments and opening up the space, and by uncovering the original marble flooring and repairing the moldings.

The lobby’s interior was also redesigned using Secretary of the Interior Guidelines for Historic Preservation, which gave a framework for providing a unique solution to the lobby’s overall look and feel. The guidelines require any new elements of a renovation to

The top floor of the 301 building contained a unique Collegiate Gothic office suite originally used by the building’s architect. The office suite was retained, renovated and incorporated into a luxury penthouse guest room.

BEFORE

Additional square footage was created in the 301 Building by repurposing the elevator shaft for laundry and trash and relocating a stairwell to the exterior.

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Beneath it was a magnificent Jazz Era bank lobby with grand columns, marble floor and a breathtaking interior view. have a modern design, and Gilbert says they provided an excellent way to honor the building’s past while giving guests a feeling of the here-and-now.

“They are good guidelines because they require you to be able to walk into a room and be able to tell what’s original and what’s new,” Gilbert says. “We approached the lobby design as if we were adding jewels to a jewel box. The original architecture of the lobby made a strong statement. It was neoclassical and was mostly still intact. Our solution was to introduce oversized contemporary elements into the lobby.”

The most prominent example of the contemporary design solution is an oversized, curved lobby wall, parallel to the hotel’s bar. The wall is dramatic, dotted with large backlit curls that are reflected throughout the room. The team was also inspired to create the check-in desk to suggest a nautilus shell.

“We played off of the curves suggested by Hotel Indigo’s conch shell logo,” Gilbert says.

“It is a bold element that defines the lobby and separates it from the bar and restaurant.”

One of the more surprising discoveries resulted in a valuable addition to the hotel’s guest rooms.

A unique top-floor office in the American Trust building had been the personal office of Henry Hibbs, the original architect of the building,

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and presented the opportunity to create a one-of-a-kind space.

“The Collegiate Gothic-styled office was completely intact and screamed out to be used in a unique way,” recalls Gilbert, “and we made the decision to use it as a part of a very large four-room penthouse suite.

It was an important goal of the project to keep the office because it adds to the historic character. The grand suite, which has its original proportions intact, is one of the crown jewels of the project and features the original woodwork and trim, fireplace, leaden, terrazzo floors and leaden glass.”

Since opening its doors in 2010, Nashville’s Hotel Indigo has been a smash. The project received widespread regional press during construction and after opening, and has won historic preservation awards from Nashville’s Metro Historical Commission and the Urban Land Institute.

“I’ve learned a lot from never giving up on this project,” Gilbert says.

“Meaningful work can take a very long time, especially when it comes to historic renovations since they can be so complicated. Rather than jump in hastily, it’s sometimes better to take your time and let the buildings speak. Many of the solutions to this project emerged as we explored the history of the buildings, and during the process of pulling layers away.

I’m just glad such grand buildings are back online in Nashville. They are back, they are living again.”▪

Team

Patrick Gilbert, AIA, LEED AP PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE / PROJECT MANAGER

William C. Mays Project coordinator

Ramona Ramaker Batt, IIDA, LEED AP Interior designer

Stephen Brown, P.E. Civil engineer

RIGHT: It was important to preserve the exterior facades so they would stand out visually. They were cleaned, painted and polished.

Historic Nashville

American National Bank

©Mike Slate Photo courtesy Mike Slate  

  

   

http://www.nashvillewebreview.com/automat/nashville/businesses/AmNatBank.html

©Wiles

FROM TOP: Nashville Trust Bank at 315 Union St., built in 1925; American Trust Bank at 301 Union St., built in 1909; American Trust Bank after 10-story addition

Huashan Hospital

hanghai is a showcase for China’s emergence onto the world stage as a thriving, modern economic power. With a landmark-quality design that thoughtfully blends Chinese and Western concepts about healthcare, the city’s newest medical facility, Huashan Hospital, will be a symbol of the country’s advancements.

The state-of-the-art hospital is part of the Shanghai International Medical City campus that will also include an innovative Shared Facility, two additional hospitals and four specialized centers of excellence. Huashan Hospital will be the first of the facilities to be constructed, and will set the standard for a campus intended to attract patients from other parts of China, as well as international medical tourists who are seeking advanced care at affordable prices in the world’s most populous country. The GS&P team developed a competition submittal that reflects the client’s ambitious goals for the campus, which include an innovative medical facility that showcases the future of medicine in China, patientfocused care, efficient operation, landmark-quality architecture and green building practices.

“Shanghai is an example of China’s expertise in technology, finance and healthcare. Part of the reasoning behind the campus is to elevate healthcare and present it as a model for other parts of China,” says David Stewart, a member of the team working on the project at GS&P’s Shanghai and Nashville offices.

“Huashan Hospital is one of the first facilities on the campus, and it is important that the design not only fulfills its specific goals, but also

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Client

Location

Huashan Hospital

Shanghai, China

provides operational and aesthetic benchmarks for the rest of the campus to follow.”

that nature and technology play in the healing process. Patients and caregivers in the radiology department, for example, benefit from ample sunlight and rooftop gardens that provide natural, recuperative settings. Windows throughout the facility open to let in outside air, which, while adding to the engineering challenges of designing the central heating and air-conditioning system, was essential to meeting the cultural expectations of the Chinese, who value the movement of fresh air.

Changing requirements and new challenges Initially intended to have a mix of financing sources, Huashan Hospital is now a public hospital receiving the Chinese equivalent of federal funding. This shift in ownership and project requirements, including a change in the size of the facility, means the design team has had to reconsider the approach and reaffirm the goal of bringing the best of two cultures together.

“Cost has become more of a concern as the project has evolved, but even though it is receiving public financing, they are committed to making it unique from a flow and design perspective. The size may have changed from 150,000 square meters to 120,000, but we’re still focused on not designing a standard Chinese hospital. It starts with Chinese requirements, but we are trying to bring the best from the East and the West,” says Stewart.

Huashan Hospital’s landmarkquality design creates spaces and forms that express the dual roles

“Cultural differences, and the hospital’s emphasis on patientfocused care are reflected in the design of individual patient rooms,” says Stewart. “Most of the rooms have a southern exposure to bring in as much natural light as possible. To honor this Chinese custom, we studied the hours of sunlight and shadows a room will receive throughout the year.

Unlike the United States, where private hospital rooms are the norm, most of Huashan’s patient rooms have three beds and are intended to become a community of patients and families offering mutual support to one another. All of the beds are angled toward the windows, and headwalls extend to provide a degree of privacy when desired. A patient’s expectation of personal space is different from ours, and a patient in a private

Market

Services

Healthcare

Architecture Interior Design Master Planning Sustainability

Shared Facility

Huashan Hospital

Cancer Hospital

Huashan is the first facility to be constructed in Shanghai International Medical City campus, which will also include a Shared Facility, two additional hospitals and four specialized centers of excellence.

...creates spaces and forms that express the dual roles that nature and technology play in the healing process.

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Natural lighting and intuitive wayfinding in the entrance lobby reduce anxiety among inpatients, outpatients and visitors.

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room might feel isolated. Culturally speaking, the design of the rooms makes sense.”

Huashan Hospital’s innovative design also brings new technology and efficiency to the caregiving process. Intraoperative operating suites combine MRI, surgery and DSA (digital subtraction angiography) in order to provide physicians with immediate feedback during surgery without having to transfer patients to separate rooms. Relatively new to China, intraoperative operating suites have become a state-of-theart feature in a growing number of U.S. hospitals, where they save time and improve patient outcomes.

Designed to promote well-being Huashan Hospital’s patient-focused design begins with the entrance lobby, which is arranged to

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reduce anxiety among inpatients, outpatients and visitors. Such a feature is especially important in China, where most healthcare services, even ordinary doctor’s visits, are delivered in a hospital setting and facilities can be crowded. At Huashan Hospital, natural light, clearly designated separate patient entrances and intuitive wayfinding promote a sense of well-being. The hospital’s thoughtful design separates inpatient circulation from public hallways and other areas used by individuals on their way to or from appointments with a doctor, a feature that guarantees greater privacy for patients and their families.

The design also satisfies Chinesespecific regulations, such as requiring strict separation of soiled materials from clean supplies and from patients and their families. The GS&P team designed soiled circulation flows through separate elevators and hallways to

a dedicated mezzanine level, and eventually to a special dock where they are placed on trucks that travel along a dedicated route leading away from the hospital.

“There are many separate circulation routes that we have to map. This is part of the government review and is very intensive,” says Stewart. “It helps to ensure that patient and material flows are seamless all the way from the patient’s room to the main road.”

Huashan Hospital is designed with an emphasis on efficiency and will have optimal connections to future buildings in the International Medical City complex, including the GS&P-designed Shared Facility, which will be the central point for all logistical services including food, laundry and supplies, as well as diagnostic technology, treatment centers and surgery. As new specialty hospitals are constructed on the campus, they will connect to the Shared Facility and avoid the

Patient rooms feature angled headwalls to accommodate three patient beds, while providing privacy and a view to the outdoors.

ABOVE: To honor the Chinese custom of providing as much sunlight as possible, the team studied the hours of sunlight and shadows a room will receive throughout the year. Most patient rooms were aligned to have a southern exposure.

BELOW: The cutting edge intraoperative suite combines MRI, OR and DSA (digital subtraction angiography). This layout provides immediate feedback during a surgery without transferring patients, which significantly reduces the time for each surgery case.

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Basement

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TOP: First floor plan highlighting vehicular/pedestrian circulation and main lobby.

OPPOSITE TOP: Vertical circulation diagrams show separation of patients, staff, public and materials.

OPPOSITE BOTTOM: Materials will be moved through the basement tunnel. The general public will use the ground level, and patients/staff will use sky bridges to transfer to other campus buildings.

“It’s similar to the Disney model. All this is happening without the public seeing it,” says Stewart.

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Roof gardens were incorporated into the design as a way to integrate nature and reduce energy consumption.

Ample green spaces create a park-like setting.

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The building’s energy efficiency was improved through maximized natural light, controlled solar heat gains and a high-efficiency glass façade with sun screens.

expense of duplicating those services.

“When we were working on the campus master plan, we spent countless hours making sure circulation was not only efficient, but also as stress-free as possible

use the ground level, and materials will move through a basement tunnel to facilitate logistics,” says Stewart. “You can actually drive to the Shared Facility completely underground. It’s similar to the Disney model. All this is happening without the public seeing it.”

...intended to have a connection to the environment so the buildings appear to rise out of the ground. for visitors,” explains Kevin Kim, principal-in-charge for Huashan.

“The same principles were naturally carried into our design process for the individual facilities. At this level we know it can have an immediate impact on staff efficiency and, ultimately, positive outcomes for the patients.”

Close adjacencies of related departments, a feature of many Western hospital designs, will create compact and efficient circulation and maximize operational relationships among the emergency room, imaging department, operating rooms and intensive care units. Huashan Hospital will also connect to the Shared Facility and future buildings through multiple levels above and below ground.

“Patients and staff will use sky bridges to transfer from one building to another. The public will

Respecting nature The hospital’s design features gentle, organic curvatures that are expressed in modern materials. The team found inspiration in nature, and the design is intended to have a connection to the environment so the buildings appear to rise out of the ground.

“It’s designed to feel like there is ample green space — a park-like setting instead of urban sprawl,” explains Stewart. “Certain shapes repeat themselves, which provides a cohesive design and even subconsciously ties the elements together.”

“Most of our work overseas, particularly in China and Korea, has a strong emphasis on incorporating natural elements into the design, perhaps even stronger than patients see in the States,” adds Kim. “For instance, the open

outdoor spaces — courtyards, gardens and such — are often so well integrated into the designs that they become a part of the buildings rather than just a secondary element or add-on.”

The connection to nature is strengthened by features that enhance the hospital and Shared Facility’s environmental sustainability. The most obvious is the green roof above each structure which consists of planter systems of living grasses, flowers and other small plants. GS&P has designed green roofs for healthcare facilities in the United States and recognized that such a feature would meet the client’s goal of reducing energy consumption.

“Sustainability is a key issue in China, and green roofs have wideranging benefits, from energy efficiency and controlling water runoff to extending the life of your roof,” says Stewart. “A green roof makes a clear connection to nature and is integral to our design.

Sustainability is hard to see in a building. Sometimes you need a visual element that everyone can recognize.”

Also making a clear connection to Mother Nature is the south-facing glass façade. Made with highefficiency glass to control solar heat gain, it incorporates exterior shading devices and beautifully accentuates the design’s natural elements.

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The design features gentle, organic curvatures expressed in modern materials that signify the dual roles that nature and technology play in healing.

Becoming a reality Originally hired to perform a feasibility study for the Shanghai International Medical City campus, GS&P was ultimately commissioned to prepare the master plan. The team is now working on the design of individual buildings and looks forward to its growing international presence.

“The International Medical City has evolved over many years and it’s exciting to see Huashan Hospital come out of the master

plan to become Shanghai’s newest healthcare facility. It represents an opportunity for the city to project an image of a thriving, dynamic and modern metropolis,” says Kim. “Even the materials selected for the hospital convey the understanding that it is strong technologically,” says Stewart. “You’ll know when you walk in that you are going to get the best care. It’s exciting for all of us to see the campus begin to take shape.”▪

team

Kevin K. S. Kim, AIA PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE

David J. Stewart, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP PROJECT MANAGER

Jeffrey W. Kuhnhenn, AIA, LEED AP Project Designer

Sam Lin project designer

James R. Kolb, RA, LEED AP project architect

Claire Claytor project coordinator

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Jackson National Life

W

hen Jackson National Life Insurance decided to expand nationally with a new regional headquarters, they had a detailed vision of a sleek, modern, and very friendly corporate environment for an energetic young workforce. At the same time, the Michiganbased company wanted to provide a formal but warm and approachable space for their executive team.

Jackson National looked at various buildings across the country before settling on a speculative office building in Franklin, Tennessee.

A feature wall and ceiling in the entry lobby provide a dynamic focal point for the visitor, as well as a visual barrier to the elevator lobby.

Client

Location

Jackson National Life

Franklin, Tennessee

The executive suite has its own small lobby / pre-function area that opens into the boardroom with the use of pivot doors.

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Market

Services

Corporate+Urban Design

Interior Design Civil Engineering Structural Engineering Electrical Engineering

Their plan was to move into the building in three phases, the first of which would include the first, second and fifth floors, a total of 96,000 square feet that would include a 12,000 square-foot dining facility, a corporate data center, offices and common work areas, and an executive suite.

with establishing good lines of communication so we could execute their vision.”

The overarching challenge of the first phase of the project was to transform a generic office building — not built with one tenant in mind — into a stylish workplace with a unified corporate image, and an environment that welcomed young employees and seasoned executives alike. The company loved Middle Tennessee’s beauty, business climate and highly educated pool of workers, and were eager to invest in a workplace that would match the area’s quality of life and vibrancy.

Jackson National is known for having a hands-on approach, which meant the company’s leadership would be heavily involved in decisions about design — from material selection to chairs for the boardroom. The GS&P team was challenged to work collaboratively with the client, more so than is typically required.

“Jackson National is a company with extremely high standards,” says design leader Jack Weber.

“They had ideas about what they wanted. We were charged

Mechanical Engineering Plumbing Engineering Signage/Graphics

Collaborative design Jackson National Life is a large national company with over $680 million in annual revenue. Despite holding a power spot as one of the country’s top three largest sellers of variable annuities, the company keeps a low profile when it comes to marketing. They have little or no national advertising and possess little desire for extensive corporate branding. The company simply didn’t need or want to make their corporate stamp with brash logos or other marketingoriented techniques. But they did want to give full expression to the company’s core values and cooperative corporate culture. The GS&P team worked alongside the Jackson National leadership team to translate key concepts considered integral to the company: impeccable professionalism, a strong belief in the value of collaboration, an ironclad commitment to quality, and a willingness to be playful and casual when the time calls for it.

Jackson National had several priorities for the space, and at

the top of the list was a focus on making an impression on current and future employees.

“The client wanted to make sure they could find the best and the brightest young employees,” says Senior Designer and Project Manager Kelly Hodges.

“They wanted to have an inviting space for them; an environment that would add to the excitement of working for a great company and would not only attract them but retain them.”

The GS&P team conducted vision sessions with Jackson National’s real estate and executive team led by Dennis Blue, and worked especially closely with Mike Wells, president and CEO. It took time to narrow the focus and agree on a combined vision.

“We had to go back and forth a bit,” Weber says. “We knew the client wanted a contemporary look that would be appealing to young professionals in their 20s and 30s, but interpreting the vision precisely was a challenge. Our first designs were a little too retro. We went back to the drawing board and simplified the designs and made them less tied to a period style, although they still had the sleek, uncluttered features of modern design. The focus on young

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LEFT TO RIGHT: The lobby before renovations, the design teams’ concept sketch, rendering and final solution.

professionals guided the direction of our interior design image with a nod toward colorful graphic accents and a large collection of original art throughout the building.”

First impressions, unifying graphics One of the project’s most important challenges was to transform the entry lobby area from a passthrough zone, originally designed

project, so we needed a big element with personality.”

The collaborative team solved the dilemma by including an oversized inspiration image — a feature wall and ceiling — that acts as a dynamic focal point for visitors, and as a visual barrier to the elevator lobby. Shapes used for the large image became a consistent, balancing theme used repetitively and creatively in several key areas of the building.

“Working with our internal environmental graphics team, we took the basic patterns and translated them into other graphics to unify the concept throughout the space,” Weber says. “We kept with very neutral colors in the main lobby, with wood or stone elements, but with one important exception.

We included a bright reception desk that not only acts as the focal point of the lobby, but also hints toward the more playful splashes of color of the interior spaces.”

“...make it more personal,” Weber says. “It was an opportunity to define the character of the entire project, so we needed a big element with personality.” for multiple tenants, into a reception area what would create a very strong first impression.

“We needed to scale the lobby down and make it more personal,” Weber says. “It was an opportunity to define the character of the entire

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Circular shapes in the feature wall, ceiling and throughout give an abstract nod to the company’s logo, the profile of a horse contained within a red circle. The gentle suggestion of the company’s logo is in keeping with Jackson National’s understated — but highly sophisticated — corporate image.

Additional steps were taken to further the goal of replacing the formerly conservative pass-through space at the building’s entrance with an entryway that would make a bold — but calm and orderly — first impression. Traditional ceiling light was replaced with pendant linear fluorescent and floor mounted lights that could wash the coffered ceiling and feature wall with light. A stone floor was added with overlapping bands of grey, black and white, which reflect the geometric design of the new ceiling and desk.

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Bright repetitions, rejuvenating spaces The graphic patterns established in Jackson National’s entrance lobby are repeated as brightly colored design elements on every floor. For instance, large framed panels of patterned glass provide colorful focal points at either end of the elevator lobbies. The panels also act as a separation wall that sets apart a gathering place for employees before or after meetings in adjacent conference rooms.

“In contrast to the white graphic elements used in the lobby, the graphic elements in other areas are more playful,” Hodges says. “The bright colors are much less formal.”

Screen wall colors alternate from floor-to-floor to help employees and visitors with wayfinding throughout the building. Colorful

graphic elements are also used in break rooms on wall coverings and framed glass panels. Graphics in the dining area depart slightly from the strong colors in other parts of the building, but still reflect the grid patterns established by the lobby screen wall. Circles are not the suggestive logo emblems but large, bright disc-like ceiling lights and are replicated on a stained concrete floor.

“We wanted the break and dining areas to be places of relief and rejuvenation,” explains Hodges. “You have similar elements in this space but it’s not quite the same feel as the rest of the building. This is a less formal place to eat, meet, play ping-pong or foosball.

It’s all about the client’s desire to offer unique amenities to their young workforce.”

Framed, colored 3form and patterned glass panels provide a visual focal point at either end of the typical floor elevator lobbies. On the opposite side of these walls are pre-function areas that provide a gathering place for employees before or after meetings in the adjacent conference rooms.

Break rooms are located on each of the typical floors and are brightened by colorful graphic wall coverings and 3form/glass framed feature wall elements. Recessed circular fluorescent ceiling lights are mirrored on the floor by the circular patterns cut into the vinyl floor.

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“We wanted the break and dining areas to be places of relief and rejuvenation,” explains Hodges. “...to offer unique amenities to their young workforce.”

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The graphic patterns on the glass tie design elements throughout the building together by providing stylized versions of the feature wall located in the main lobby. The typical colors of the screen walls are alternated on each floor to help employees and visitors with wayfinding throughout the building.

Jackson National also wanted to create a modern, flexible work environment where employees feel valued, not tucked away in dark offices or stuffed into tiny cubicles.

The office floors are organized to reflect this concern.

“Years ago, executives and senior employees had exclusive claim to the window office,” Weber says. “Our solution uses less standard office space and more open space and common working areas. We organized the floors to maximize views and natural light for everyone. We stacked the private offices away from the glass. Even within the executive suite, where offices are planned on the perimeter, they have full glass fronts that allow for natural light and views for other employees.”

The fifth floor executive suite needed to blend in with the

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elements used on the first and third floors, but also be set apart as a more conventional area for formal events such as international board meetings or high-level planning sessions. The same inclusionary principles of stacking offices and providing pre-function areas for congregation points were used, but colors are largely neutral with highquality materials used for furniture and other decorative elements.

Examples of more formal elements include the high-end millwork used in the executive boardroom, and a row of sleek pivot doors that act as both a grand entrance into the boardroom and a convenient way to open the room to the rest of the space.

“The level of sophistication comes out in the details,” Weber says.

“They are almost always a gesture, a touch or flourish of excellence and

beauty, not something that screams at you. Success comes in the selection of the very best materials, and the most elegant small features and details.”

A dose of patience and ultimate success Despite the comparatively troublefree execution of the interior designs, a few structural obstacles became some of the bigger challenges in the project. The GS&P team had to work closely with the local codes department to rework and upgrade the space from standard business occupancy to one that permits multiple uses and assembly, and had to reconfigure the space to house two important areas—the corporate data center and the large employee dining area.

LEFT: The client requested a “lounge” or informal meeting space near the boardroom for employees and visitors to use as they are waiting for a meeting to begin. ABOVE: The boardroom (center) was designed to reflect Jackson’s executive corporate image with state-of-the-art audio visual equipment and high-end artwork.

“It was a difficult task to get all the elements of the first floor to work,” says Hodges. “We had to combine blocks of spaces to solve it, to get the flow, circulation and all the entrances and exits to work. We were forced to put the data center close to the glass and not on the interior, which would have been the ideal place for it. We finally solved the problem by building a drywall partition in front of the exterior glass. It’s a solution that kept the effects of heat and sunlight low.”

The Jackson National Life Insurance building debuted in April 2011, bringing with it almost 300 jobs and much fanfare in the community. The success of the project led to additional projects with clients in Lansing, Michigan; Tampa, Florida; Denver, Colorado and other cities. The GS&P team landed a national agreement with the firm and will

be included as an integral team member for future projects.

“The client did not originally intend to bring a design consultant on board for the project, so we had to build a strong, reliable, consistent rapport with them,” Weber says.

“Initially, we would never have expected the project to turn out with these high-end, high-quality results, but that’s the beauty of working with a sophisticated, informed client. The partnership took time to develop, but the result is that we have a long-term client who really believes in us. We are seen as trusted advisors who can bring smart, innovative ideas to the table.”▪

team

Jack E. Weber, IIDA, MCR, LEED AP PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE

Kelly Knight Hodges, NCIDQ, LEED AP PROJECT MANAGER

Amy Klinefelter, LEED AP Project professional / project Designer

Ann Seton Trent, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP Ben Goebel, AIA Stephen Brown, P.E. Gary L. Dauberman William H. Masters, P.E., LEED AP Johnathan C. Woodside, LEED AP Blaine Matthews, P.E., LEED AP Douglas E. Karaszewski, LEED AP Jim Alderman, SEGD Mike Summers R.J. Tazelaar, P.E. Jennifer M. Shupe, P.E. Additional

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Marcella Vivrette Smith Park Master Plan

L

ocated just a few miles south of Nashville, the City of Brentwood, Tennessee, is one of the fastest-growing communities in the nation. Already known for its corporate headquarters, modern office parks and fine homes, it will soon be known as home to one of the region’s most beautiful and natural multi-use parks.

When completed, the new park will consist of event space in the renovated historic Ravenswood home, eight miles of trails, three new trailheads, two new picnic shelters, new practice athletic fields, an extension of the existing bikeway/greenway, and a new park entrance road off of Wilson Pike with a bridge spanning over the existing railroad.

The GS&P team guided the City through a master planning process for Marcella Vivrette Smith Park that will achieve their vision of restoring a treasured 19thcentury home that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, preserving hundreds of acres of land in a pristine, natural state, and providing unparalleled opportunities for Brentwood residents to escape into the quiet of carefully preserved wilderness areas or enjoy a family picnic and recreation.

Client

Location

City of Brentwood, TN

Brentwood, Tennessee

During the master planning process the team assisted the City in successfully addressing key challenges and opportunities, including circulation of visitors, safe public access over a railroad crossing, programming, integration of the historic Ravenswood home with other park facilities, and the relationship of the park to adjacent neighborhoods.

did,” says Trey Rudolph, landscape architect and project team member.

“The team’s goal was to design not just a park but an experience. That was at the core of everything we

A Rare Opportunity When the family that owned the farm offered to sell it for use as a park, Brentwood officials knew that if they did not act, the opportunity might never come again. The City recognized that preserving the nearly 200-year-old Ravenswood home and the surrounding wooded

After developing the park’s master plan, GS&P worked with the City to develop an implementation plan that would maximize the residents’ initial access to the park amenities, and fit within the City’s budget over the next seven years.

Phase 1: Includes access road, bridge and paved bikeways, parking, hiking trail improvements, extension of core utilities, restrooms, Ravenswood home improvements and pool house conversion.

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Phase 2: Includes completion of Loop road, bikeway loop, parking, practice fields, restrooms and bikeway extensions.

Market

Services

Land Planning

Planning Landscape Architecture Civil Engineering Master Planning Sustainability

hills and fields for the enjoyment of its current residents and future generations was a once-in-alifetime opportunity.

and president of the Republic of Texas, served as best man at Wilson’s wedding on the farm grounds.

The heritage of the park land is long and storied. James Hazard Wilson II named the home Ravenswood in a tribute to his friend Sam Houston who, while spending three years living with a Cherokee tribe, was given the name Colonneh, or “the Raven,” by a tribal chief. Houston, whose colorful career also included becoming governor of Tennessee

With so much at stake — the heritage of the past and the quality of life for future generations — Brentwood officials asked the team to develop a master plan that protects the park from intrusions by the modern world.

“The Smith family wanted to preserve the heritage and tradition of the land and partnered with the City,” says Michael Flatt, the project’s

principal-in-charge. “They had a strong desire to preserve the property, much as it has been for nearly 200 years and even longer, before the farm was established, so that as Brentwood and the surrounding areas of Williamson County become more densely developed, future generations will have the opportunity to enjoy quiet walks in the woods. The City shared that desire and immediately began the task of turning the family’s vision into reality.”

In order to accomplish this, a detailed cost estimate was developed for the entire park. Then, amenities were ranked based on safety, cost, and maximized usage to develop the phased implementation plan.

Phase 3: Includes playground/shelter, completion of historic improvements to Ravenswood home and site, completion of hiking and mountain bike trails and maintenance area.

Phase 4: Includes interior road extension and parking, cove trailhead and future development.

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The result is a natural preserve that seamlessly blends with the fabric of the community and, as the park is developed in phases over the coming years, may come to be described as Brentwood’s Central Park.

“Brentwood is a center of commerce, the home of national companies such as Community Health Systems and LifePoint Hospitals.

But Brentwood is also a city of parks, a city whose leaders are committed to enhancing the quality of life for its citizens and ensuring that they have access to open spaces for active recreation and quiet reflection. In Brentwood’s already-outstanding system of parks, Marcella Vivrette Smith Park is one more trophy,” adds Project Manager Mike Hunkler.

A condition assessment was conducted on the main house and 10 additional existing facilities on the site.

Using this information, the team met with the City’s Historic Commission and the project stakeholder group to develop programming for the structures.

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Preserving the past Preserving the historic Ravenswood home and the surrounding grounds for public use was a key goal of the master plan. The circa 1825 home will be one of the park’s primary attractions and will be available to host wedding receptions, business meetings and other social events.

Recommendations had to be made regarding new public use facilities at the house – such as new restrooms – and how to achieve a historically accurate renovation.

The home was a private residence until recently, and numerous additions and changes were made over the last 187 years.

“The challenge is how far you turn back the clock,” says Hunkler.

“In 1860, you didn’t have a side

porch. In 1890, a window might have been added. In 1910, a doorway might have been altered.

Ravenswood home has always been the home of an active family who naturally made changes over the years. So the question becomes, which changes are eliminated and which ones are preserved during the restoration?”

Leveraging all available resources, the team consulted Centric Architecture regarding the preservation of the house and surrounding structures. Such structures include well-preserved brick cabins that housed slaves on the property before the Civil War. Telling their story and interpreting their history is a crucial part of the park’s mission.

ABOVE: The historic Ravenswood home, circa 1825, will be one of the park’s primary attractions. The home was a private residence until recently, and numerous additions and changes were made over the last 187 years. The surrounding grounds will be available to host wedding receptions, business meetings and other social events. BELOW: Well-preserved brick cabins housed slaves on the property before the Civil War.

Rudolph visited the slave quarters during an open house when guides in period costume were giving tours. “To walk through the property, the slave cabins are the most powerful.

To go in those structures and see what they were is an emotional experience,” he says.

Interpretive signage will be placed at the slave quarters, and Brentwood may invite local artists to use them as studios where students can take lessons. “It would be a stimulating setting with the ability to tell the story and embrace the heritage of Ravenswood,” says Flatt.

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ABOVE: The team identified specific views that enhanced the experience of hikers and highlight the property’s beauty. Trailheads were placed near the athletic practice fields, which are located on naturally flat terrain.

LEFT: Trails that preserved a sense of splendid isolation were incorporated into the park’s eight miles of dirt trails, each just 18 inches wide.

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Designing an experience Brentwood officials asked that careful attention be given to the visitor experience; to the sense of escape from the pressures of modern life. In response, the master plan envisions not only preserving 250 of the park’s 320 acres in a natural state, it also recommends protecting the viewshed by shielding the park’s ridges from development. No rooftops will disrupt the tree canopy, and no lights will disturb the night sky.

“Our goal was to balance the park’s environmental features, uses and the cost,” says team engineer Lori Lange. “Lighting will be kept to a minimum and will incorporate highly efficient LED bulbs, which consume just a fraction of the electricity of regular lights and reduce the long-term expense of operations. Natural plantings along the north and south property lines screen park facilities from view without the cost or the intrusion of fencing.”

Other features share the dual benefits of making the park more environmentally sustainable but less expensive to maintain. All of the plants and trees being introduced are native species which resist diseases and insects without extensive use of pesticides and require only minimal irrigation.

“Green” features such as bioswales and rain gardens increase sustainability, as do less-visible

features such as open-bottom culverts that preserve natural stream beds.

Achieving the City’s goal of creating a park where Brentwood residents can find refuge in nature and enjoy “passive” recreation — hiking, biking and other activities that don’t involve a team sport — drove the overall plan for the design. To fully understand how to create that experience for visitors, team members had to experience it for themselves and learn firsthand the power of Marcella Vivrette Smith Park to evoke a sense of wonder and connection with the natural world. During their explorations, they identified specific views that enhance the experience of hikers and highlight the property’s beauty.

Those views were incorporated into the master plan.

“Team members hiked and biked the existing horse and cattle trails that crisscross the hills,” says Lange. Trails that came too close to a neighboring backyard were abandoned. Those that preserved a sense of splendid isolation were incorporated into the park’s eight miles of dirt trails, each just 18 inches wide. The end result will be, that on either side of a trail, it could be 1825 again, the year of Ravenswood’s construction.

“We made a conscious decision to stay true to the intent of the park,” says Rudolph. “The intent is to go out there and lose yourself, get away from town and be in the woods.”

To preserve the sense of solitude in the heart of the park, areas where people gather are near the entrance. Trailheads were placed near the athletic practice fields, which are located on naturally flat terrain. The fields are intended for day use only and are being left unlighted to preserve the park’s dark sky effect. Other busy areas — picnic shelters, a playground and restrooms — are nearby.

Marcella Vivrette Smith Park will provide its visitors with a feeling of escape and solitude, but the park itself will not be isolated. It will be intentionally connected to Brentwood’s existing bikeway system: a 10-foot-wide bikeway that wrap around the park’s historic area and will be shared by cyclists, runners and walkers who can pursue those activities without disturbing hikers in the interior.

The park will not incorporate equestrian trails, at least in the beginning, but it does acknowledge Brentwood’s heritage of horse farms in a very visible

“...to go out there and lose yourself, get away from town and be in the woods.” says Rudolph.

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way. Fencing inside the park is identical to the wooden fourboard horse fences that were historically used in the region.

A Smooth Transition Any 320-acre development, even one whose purpose is to maintain the natural setting, is bound to raise concerns among neighbors, and Marcella Vivrette Smith Park is no exception.

Team members participated in three neighborhood meetings and one larger public meeting.

“This isn’t a shopping mall, it’s a park. You’d think it would be an easy sell,” says Hunkler. “Most people like parks, but some people don’t.”

Of major concern was the anticipated increase in traffic for surrounding neighborhoods and nearby Ravenwood High School, a factor that helped determine the final planning for the park’s entrance.

In addition, the entrance had to be safe. The existing entry, a road across busy railroad tracks, was too dangerous. A bridge was necessary, but, in keeping with the goal of “creating an experience,” the team did not want a looming structure that might overwhelm the Ravenswood home and dominate the park. The elegant solution

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provides two 10-foot traffic lanes and a separate 10-foot-wide bike path and sidewalk. The bridge leads to a curving entrance road that encourages visitors to slow down — not only their cars but their thoughts — and eases their transition from a suburban to a natural setting.

“It’s quite an engineering feat,” Hunkler says of the bridge and the way the elements of the park work together to create a unique visitor experience. The City of Brentwood selected GS&P for the project because of the firm’s design and engineering skills, and the combination paid off. “You don’t think of selecting a park master planner because of their engineering, but the team’s abilities were critical to creating this great solution.”

While the initial phase of the park plans to open in late 2013, the project’s scope also involved cost estimates and a multi-year plan for construction of the park’s remaining three phases, including unlit practice fields, 80 additional acres, mountain biking and hiking trails, and picnic areas.

The completed Marcella Vivrette

Smith Park will be a lasting example of the City’s commitment to the well-being of its residents, now and into the future, and is something Mike Flatt and the team are extremely proud of.

“Being so intimately involved in the creation of such an important community asset is a rare and incredibly fulfilling opportunity,” says Flatt. “The team thoroughly enjoyed being part of something that embraces the past and preserves it for the future. It’s not something we get to do every day.”▪

At the park entrance, a 10-foot sidewalk and bike path will safely transport pedestrians and cyclists from the existing greenway into the park.

“Being so intimately involved in the creation of such an important community asset is a rare and incredibly fulfilling opportunity,” says Flatt.

The master plan envisions not only preserving 250 of the park’s 320 acres in a natural state, it also recommends protecting the viewshed by shielding the park’s ridges from development.

No rooftops will disrupt the tree canopy, and no lights will disturb the night sky.

team

Michael A. Flatt, P.E. PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE

Michael D. Hunkler, P.E., LEED AP PROJECT MANAGER

Lori Lange, P.E. PROJECT ENGINEER

Nicholas Paul Young, ASLA PRoject Designer

Trey Rudolph, RLA Landscape architect

Ted A. Kniazewycz, P.E. transportation engineer

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Mississippi DOT ITS Integrator/Video Migration

he Mississippi Department of Transportation is a leader in providing traffic videos on its traveler information website and to agencies that rely on the system of roadside cameras to provide services and protect public safety. When MDOT realized the existing system did not have the capacity to support planned growth, it turned to GS&P for a solution.

MDOT now offers real-time, on-demand traffic video to anyone with internet access.

The successful and popular system of 50 cameras had grown to 300, with plans for doubling that amount in the near future, and scalability was becoming a concern. MDOT recognized that it had a self-perpetuating problem: each new camera required more equipment to support it, which required more room in the central equipment room and more energyconsuming air conditioning to deal with heat from the electronics.

Partner agencies that wanted to join the system also had to add expensive equipment of their own, and costs were threatening to balloon. In addition, the videos on the website were only supported in Windows Media Player, despite the proliferation of alternative video software.

Instead of looking for a temporary solution, the GS&P team saw an opportunity to replace MDOT’s existing setup with an elegant system that provides more traffic videos from more cameras to more motorists and partner agencies with less energy-hungry hardware in the central equipment room. At the same time, the new system saves tens of thousands of dollars and is significantly more environmentally sustainable.

“Doing more with less goes into the type of solution we picked,” says team member Ranzy Whiticker.

“MDOT’s legacy system relied on

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Client

Location

Mississippi Department of Transportation

Statewide, Mississippi

technology that provided constantly streaming video and consumed vast amounts of bandwidth.

From a video’s source to its final destination, it could travel through as many as twelve devices plus network switches, introducing numerous points of failure.

equipment to distribute the same amount of video, and with fewer points of potential failure, the system is even more reliable and simpler to support than before.

And because H.264 is standardsbased and supported via both hardware and software products across multiple industries utilizing video, partner agencies, such as MDOT’s traffic management centers, the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency and Mississippi MED-COM, don’t have to buy expensive equipment to join the system. All they need is an Internet connection. Public safety officials, local news teams and motorists planning a trip can easily access the system on a computer, tablet or other mobile device.

“For our solution, the team turned to the widely used H.264 video format and distribution servers, the same familiar technology used

by CNN, Fox News, YouTube and others. H.264, the technology behind high-definition television, compresses each traffic video image and makes it more accessible on more platforms. In addition, the solution uses Real-Time Streaming Protocol, which requires far less bandwidth than constantly streaming images.”

Team member Laura Hartley compares bandwidth to water flowing through a pipe. “Do you want your faucet running all the time or just when you turn it on?

That’s the difference between constantly streaming video and on-demand, and it’s the key component that makes this solution so successful.”

A snapshot of the old system during peak demand showed that it used approximately 87.8 Mbps; in comparison, the new system uses only 64.8 Mbps. The new system requires 90 percent less

Saving money, improving mobility The results of MDOT’s hurricane evacuation project along Interstates 55 and 59 prove the cost-saving advantages of the new system. MDOT has 100 roadside cameras planned that will keep motorists and public officials informed of traffic conditions along this vital route. The legacy video system would have required the support of 89 separate devices in the central equipment room. The new H.264-based system requires just nine devices to support

Market

Services

awards

Transportation

Engineering Transportation Engineering

2011 National Rural Intelligent Transportation Society - Best of Rural ITS Award for Best New Innovative Application

New H.264 video format and distribution servers feed to the video wall at Jackson Traffic Management Center.

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LEFT: Hattiesburg Emergency Operations Center (EOC) partner now able to view MDOT streaming video on tablet device.

BELOW: Hattiesburg EOC First-Responder vehicle now equipped with live streaming video from MDOT cameras.

“...caption...”

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Mississippi has vaulted to a national leadership position in the use of technology to solve traffic problems...

the same number of cameras.

Eliminating the extra devices will save MDOT $176,000.

With access to the new quick, simple and affordable traffic video system, partner agencies are using the information to improve public safety. An accident along the I-59 hurricane evacuation route recently proved the value of the system to Terry Steed, director of the Forrest County Emergency Management Agency.

“A quick look at an accident location along I-59 and we were able to determine where to enter the traffic flow to quickly reach the accident site. The ability to monitor the video on our tablets, en-route, is also very helpful. Entering I-59 from the wrong ramp can cause a response vehicle to become blocked by traffic, limiting the ability to effectively respond.”

Steed has also used the website to monitor traffic backups and coordinate with others to manage traffic. “This has allowed us to advise law enforcement if a roadblock needs to be moved due to traffic being backed up because of an accident. During special

events, especially around the University of Southern Mississippi, we use our USM wall layout to manage the traffic around campus.

Additionally, monitoring traffic during hurricane evacuations is very helpful in determining the amount of traffic coming into the Hattiesburg area.”

The new system’s environmental benefits are equally as clear and measurable. With less hardware in the central equipment room, the new system produces far less heat. It now generates 8,300 BTU, compared with the old system’s 122,600 BTU, and electricity consumption dropped from 38,700 watts to 2,900 watts. Those figures represent an overall 93 percent savings in electricity and heat, saving MDOT more than $35,000 a year and eliminating the emission of 260 tons of CO2.

Despite the client’s initial hesitation to change a system that it was comfortable with, the team’s extensive migration plan, highlighting measurable benchmarks of sustainability, cost savings and energy savings, converted MDOT into an enthusiastic advocate.

“The carbon savings are the equivalent of 65 round-trip flights from Jackson, Mississippi, to Tokyo. When we presented the energy savings, that was the ‘aha’ moment,” says Hartley. “In the end, MDOT accepted a totally new solution that is cheaper, easier to use and can expand quickly and inexpensively.”

Not your parents’ roadway engineering The award-winning system is an essential part of MDOT’s ITS program and empowers the agency to provide traffic video easily, more affordably and with less environmental impact. “Clearly, 21st-century roadway engineering is evolving to require more than concrete and steel and traditional engineering services like the design of highways, bridges and signals,” says Ranzy. And with its successful new H.264-based video system, Mississippi has vaulted to a national leadership position in the use of technology to solve traffic problems that can cause frustration and threaten public safety.

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$ $ $ Savings

93% less electricity = $35,000 per year and heat 260 tons of CO2 =

65 round trips from Jackson to Tokyo per year

80 less devices = $176,000*

*savings in the equipment room for a 100 camera project

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Before Migration: extensive amount of TMC equipment.

After Migration: greatly reduced and simplified equipment requires less energy and saves MDOT tens of thousands of dollars.

Potential clients across the country are recognizing GS&P’s expertise in this type of project.

Oregon, California and Alabama have asked about the remarkable results achieved for Mississippi.

Louisiana has awarded a contract to GS&P that includes a video migration project similar to the one developed for MDOT. The results have also gained notice within the ITS industry.

The video migration project received the 2011 Best of Rural ITS Award for Best Innovative Application from the National Rural Intelligent Transportation Society.

“We showed that we could do this without disrupting current operations,” says Hartley. “The successful migration plan showed MDOT and potential future clients that we had thought of anything that might come up.”

“A lot of people are taking note,” adds Whiticker. “They are particularly interested in the team’s ‘do more with less’ approach and the careful planning that enabled us to migrate services to the new system while guaranteeing uninterrupted operation of the legacy system. It’s one thing to come up with a solution; it’s another thing to implement it and prove it works well.”▪

team

Marshall Elizer, Jr., P.E., PTOE PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE

Rodney Chester, P.E. PROJECT MANAGER

Ranzy L. Whiticker, P.E. PROJECT PROFESSIONAL

Laura E. Hartley, P.E. PROJECT COORDINATOR

Timothy S. Bean PROJECT DESIGNER

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Richmond Corporate Client

W

hen a corporate client in Richmond, Virginia, first called upon GS&P in 2009, the mission was to design an additional aviation hangar bay to house a new corporate jet. The client loved the result, but instantly realized the stark contrast created by this newly finished addition when compared to the rest of the building. Executives would surely be impressed with the state-of-the-art hangar and sleek new jet, but would still have to walk through a cluttered and outdated reception area to get there.

The new reception desk now sits in front of a Venetian Plaster wall. The plaster was chosen for its subtle sheen and beautiful handling of light. The material is repeated in the new ceiling design, a simple curved form providing a smooth surface that accents the indirect lighting.

As a result, the client commissioned GS&P to provide enhancements to the dated space. However, what began as a simple finish upgrade soon transformed into a significant renovation project after the design team identified potential issues with the space’s efficiency and use.

With an eye on providing the client with an opportunity to enhance its corporate brand, the team began to map out a plan to redesign the space to match the chic interior and amenities of the aircraft.

“These passengers are highly paid executives and are used to a certain level of amenities,” says project designer Julia Bradley Rayfield.

“The inside of these jets is sleek and modern with high-quality materials

before

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Client

Location

Undisclosed

Richmond, Virginia

that the passengers can touch. The reception area didn’t feel anything like that. When you walked into the lobby as it was, they had basically put in as many chairs as would physically fit with a hodgepodge of end tables and random potted plants. The ceiling was low, and the colors were dark and dreary. Right or wrong, it just did not fit into the experience they were used to.”

such as frumpy, worn seating, racks of reading material and a lone coffee maker that served as the beverage station. The overall layout was poor and contained an assortment of furniture, horizontal blinds that obscured the outside views and exposed exterior walls that appeared unfinished. Positioned in the middle of the clutter was the outdated receptionist area, which instantly felt dingy and claustrophobic.

Creating a new first impression As is often the case with open spaces, the lobby had become a holding area for a myriad of functions and unappealing clutter

As Rayfield recalls, “It was packed so tightly there was no feeling of spaciousness at all. One of our immediate goals was to make this fairly small space feel more spacious than it was.”

Market

Services

Aviation

Architecture Interior Design Engineering

The tiny, dark space was originally capped off by a back-lit pyramid ceiling created to look and feel like an interior skylight. The end result, however, was a poorly lit area. To create a visually quiet space, the new ceiling design incorporated a simple curved form to provide a smooth surface for indirect lighting.

Venetian Plaster was chosen as the finish because of its subtle sheen that distributed light in a way that was soothing to the eye.

soft circle, designers placed a large format porcelain tile to manage dirt or moisture tracked indoors.

The waiting area was transformed by creating organized zones to clearly define the space. A circular, carpeted area accommodates a television and comfortable mohaircovered seating for relaxation or informal meetings. Outside the

Electrical Engineering Mechanical Engineering Plumbing Engineering

“The circle was a way to have a circulation path from the door to the reception desk, as well as an easy-to-maintain surface,” explains Rayfield, “and the curved carpet elongates the seating area and gives it a soft surface below it.” To make the compact area appear much larger, the vertical blinds were removed to showcase the wall-to-wall windows and allow unobstructed views of the airfield on three sides of the building.

A complement to the design is the clean backdrop created for the client’s logo. An unexpected visual

effect created by the new logo wall and ceiling design was the resemblance to the sleek surface of a luxury jet. “It was more a matter of how can we elevate the ceiling that has a lot of visual impact and create a subtle and sophisticated effect without being boring?” recalls Rayfield. “It was sheer luck that the result happened to relate back to the aircraft.”

Safety first Another outdated space that needed a design overhaul was the kitchen.

After understanding how much kitchen space was being used for in-flight meal preparation, genuine

LEFT TO RIGHT: Too many functions occupied the previous lobby space, making it cramped and cluttered.

The kitchen area was used by employees for meal breaks, for staff preparing food for the flight, and occasionally by passengers.

This small space often forced the consumption of food and beverages in the lobby.

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Using a low room divider made of rich wood with touches of metal inlay, the waiting area is now organized into zones for viewing television and informal meetings. The large paver tile flooring in the circulation area, and plush carpet in the lounge area, further emphasize these zones.

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“...how can we elevate the ceiling that has a lot of visual impact and create a subtle and sophisticated effect without being boring?� recalls Rayfield. gresham, smith and partners

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The Café provides two things: a designated area for passengers to consume food and beverages away from the soft surfaces of the lobby, and an employee break area consistent with the client’s other buildings. By removing the food prep function from the existing café area, a more polished catering kitchen was established with appropriate storage.

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area for employees and visitors to enjoy food and beverages away from the main lobby. The lone coffee maker gave way to the Café; a fully functional and inviting refreshment area for visitors separate from the employee area.

concern for food safety emerged.

This led to a candid conversation with the client and the creation of a plan to design a professional food prep area. In doing this, the team had to create an unforeseen separation between the professional kitchen space and the staff breakroom, which introduced some minor complications.

“Much of it was fast-tracked with a quick turnaround,” explains project designer Eric Sweet, “so we had to make sure materials were available quickly but still featured the design elements that we wanted. Our client was mostly concerned about getting a good quality product that they would be happy with, and that their clients would find useful and easy to use. We knew we could deliver that, but also knew we could design a space that promoted safety at the same time.”

Not only did the solution provide a clean, dedicated area for flight attendants and crew to prepare meals, it also provided a separate

The restrooms were equally enhanced by applying upgrades that included porcelain sinks, glass tile accents, contemporary sconces, sparkling quartz wall tiles and local granite.

“The client was very cognizant of aesthetics,” Rayfield explains, “but we also made a point to improve function as much as we could. For the restrooms, we went with the “cockpit” approach; everything you need is within reach without moving, which cuts down on drips on the floor and helps keep the room clean. Decisions like that were relatively simple and small, but went a long way towards the overall effect.”

A client’s trust Trust is a key element in creating a successful relationship between a client and a design team.

“This relationship is unique in several ways,” says Rayfield, “and most of all in the level of teamwork and trust. It makes a massive difference when our clients trust

us. This client certainly weighed in and told us what works for them and their end-users, but they were also very open to our ideas. It was an absolute joy to work with them. They treated us as experts in our field, and I think the project benefited from it.”

The client was so happy with the outcome of the project that they hired GS&P to do five additional major renovations, three of which were extremely aggressive.

According to Sweet, “We designed, built and finished the projects in a little over six months from start to finish.”

“They trust us now even more than they did when we started this project,” Rayfield adds, “and it’s extremely gratifying to have a client that values our professional opinions and expertise. At the end of the day, having their trust is definitely the best feeling.”▪

team

David L. King, AIA, NCARB PRINCIPAL-IN-CHARGE / project manager

Julia Bradley Rayfield, CID, IIDA PROJECT professional

Eric Sweet, CID, IIDA Project Designer

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WRITERS

Linda Bryant Bill Lewis Lynn Yates

PHOTOGRAPHers

CSX 550 Water Street: Rob Pepple, Pepple Photography Dollar General Retail Store Program: Aaron Matheson Dayton International Airport, Land Use and Development Options Plan: Aaron Matheson Gerald R. Ford International Airport, Terminal Area and Parking Improvements: Curt Clayton, Clayton Studio Grimes Bridge Road at Warsaw Road/Norcross Street Roundabout: Aerial Innovations of Georgia Jackson National Life: Brian Robbins Richmond Corporate Client: Chris Cunningham

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