HistoricPreservation, Modernization, Repositioning, Adaptive Reuse

Think what’s possible

Page is a powerfully imaginative and collaborative architecture and engineering firm: one that’s ready for today and designed for what comes next.

Commercial buildings, 30+ years old, are large, wellknown and frequently iconic urban landmarks. They are now struggling to compete against newer more efficient buildings, changing technology, and shifting urban demographics. But to achieve lasting competitiveness in today’s market, the focus must be on repositioning these aged assets to realize their inherent value potential and achieve increased revenue.

Page understands the complexities of repositioning significant urban commercial real estate properties, engaging users and stakeholders to greatly increase public perception and desirability. Imagine that.

Visit our website at pagethink.com

PLANNING / URBAN DESIGN

We help our clients evolve, grow, and prosper because our process is informed by research, cutting-edge technology tools, and an appreciation for the unique culture of the people, organizations, and places we serve. Our interdisciplinary team of master planners, urban designers, architects, landscape architects, and programmers are dedicated to supporting the ongoing evolution of our urban areas, encouraging appropriate development and redevelopment suited to the particular conditions of each site we aim to transform. Through urban districts, institutional campuses, innovation districts, long range development plans, master plans, streetscapes and transit-oriented communities, our teams integrate the building blocks of community, sustainability, and resilience into innovative solutions.

LAB PLANNING / DESIGN

Page specializes in challenging projects for demanding clients throughout the globe. Laboratory facilities are among the most intricate and complex projects.

The unique challenges posed by highly toxic petrochemical corrosion labs, sterile environments for pharmaceutical manufacturing, biohazard high-containment suites, precise environmental control of animal laboratories are commonplace obstacles overcome by our dedicated technical team of architects and engineers every day. Page has specialists equipped with a thorough understanding of the safety standards and scientific equipment requirements foundational to the success of all laboratories.

BRANDING & GRAPHICS

Our visual identity and experiential designers create brand identities and graphic designs that support how places and environments are experienced. The orchestration of 2-dimensional design work including typography, color, imagery, form, technology and, especially, content, forms this basis. Examples of this work include wayfinding systems, architectural graphics, signage, exhibit design, retail design, and themed or branded spaces. We operate at the intersection of communications and the built environment. We provide architectural and placemaking visioning, and create overall design vocabularies that help clients hone in on the possibilities, character and nature of a project.

HISTORIC PRESERVATION / MODERNIZATION

Page’s historic preservation and modernization service begins by asking the question: “What can be done to help this building perform at its highest level?”.

Our integrated modernization approach unlocks the potential of existing buildings. Furthermore, historic preservation and modernization adapts spaces to support changes in the industry in buildings such as Courthouses, Historic Buildings, Hospitals, Government Buildings, and National Park Facilities, making them more efficient and sustainable, all while respecting the building’s history.

INTERIORS

Page believes that well-designed interiors can be a critical force. They help clients accomplish their mission, and improve the quality of people’s lives. Just like our interiors in our own offices, our clients’ interiors serve as positive, consistent visual reinforcements of their own cultural identity.

By combining the skills of our interior designers with those of our architects, planners, engineers, and visualization specialists, we offer our clients a range and quality of single point responsibility found in few other places. Our interiors services range from programming, space-planning and officing studies to the selection of furnishings, finishes and artwork.

STRATEGIES / ANALYTICS

To support clients before and beyond traditional professional services we have a dedicated strategies and analytics team that develop and employ a broad array of tools, techniques, and processes to help our clients make informed project decisions. Our in-house team brings expertise, energy and passion to clarifying client challenges and opportunities sometimes before the nature of or need for a facility or real estate project is confirmed.

BUILDING SCIENCES

Page approaches sustainable design through the interdisciplinary lens of building sciences to create higher performing, healthier, more resilient buildings. As one of the first signatories of AIA 2030 Commitment, we are invested in leading the industry towards carbonneutral buildings and advocating for resilient solutions to help our clients prepare for the future.

We believe that intention requires rigor and through our data driven and integrative process, we collaborate early and often to ensure designs are informed by our building performance analysis. With experience across a wide range of environmental certification systems, our multidisciplinary team is well qualified to provide a holistic and comprehensive approach to sustainable design.

COMMISSIONING

Page recognizes the level of investment and importance of facilities that function as designed from the day they open. Our Commissioning service provides this assurance to owners and operators as well as minimizing costly construction rework. This is accomplished through a collaborative process that includes the building owner, design professionals and the general contractor under the guiding hand of the Commissioning Authority.

Our Commissioning staff has developed a solid track record for Page as a Certified Commissioning Firm (CCF). The exacting standards of our teams of professional engineers, architects and field technicians in service of our clients support delivery of construction quality.

Page performs Testing, Adjusting, and Balancing in accordance with NEBB standards. Page is an independent testing firm with absolutely no affiliation with manufacturers, factory representatives, vendors/ providers, contractors or installers of HVAC-related equipment and systems.

Historic Preservation

Page’s historic preservation and modernization service begins by asking the question: “What can be done to help this building perform at its highest level?”.

Our integrated modernization approach unlocks the potential of existing buildings. Furthermore, historic preservation and modernization adapts spaces to support changes in the industry in buildings such as Courthouses, Historic Buildings, Hospitals, Government Buildings, and National Park Facilities, making them more efficient and sustainable, all while respecting the building’s history.

Historic Preservation is an integral part of Page’s expertise-driven design practice. We view preservation as the scientific, intelligent, and creative management of change with the utmost respect for the past. Any intervention is an opportunity to reveal the essence of what makes a structure culturally significant while enabling its contemporary relevance and ensuring the highest performance of its systems. Our architects, engineers, and conservators are committed to developing creative strategies that renew, enhance, and contribute to a more sustainable built environment.

We believe that Historic Preservation is an opportunity, not a constraint. Tangible linkage with our past is a fundamental human need and essential to enabling a healthy contemporary culture. Heritage buildings and sites offer an opportunity to layer and interweave history with the best of today’s sensibilities. Furthermore, rehabilitation projects – in the broadest sense are cost-effective and environmentally friendly alternatives to demolition and new construction. The National Resources Defense Council estimates that 80-90 percent of the nation’s 2030 building stock already exists.

We are committed to the preservation and creative adaptive use of existing structures to ensure a more sustainable future.

Modernization

Modernization isn’t just about preserving and maintaining historic buildings. Historic preservation is the baseline. Modernization is about looking critically at your existing building and asking, “What can be done to help this building perform at its highest level?” How can you adapt your space to support changes in the workplace? Reduce operating and lifecycle costs? Use space more efficiently? Achieve sustainability goals? And respect your building’s history?

A Smart Approach

The smartest way to tackle modernization is to have an integrated team of architects and engineers sitting next to each other and helping each other make the best, cost-effective decisions. Often, firms create a historic preservation studio where they put a group of people together in the corner, and that studio is there if you want to work with them. We take a different approach. We don’t have a separate studio because our entire firm is immersed in modernization. We’ve been doing these projects for 40 years, and 50% of our work involves existing buildings. Every person in the firm comes to the table with an understanding of modernization and how to work with an existing building to help it perform at its best. For us, modernization isn’t a specialty. It isn’t a boutique market. Modernization is the culture of Page.

Built-In Knowledge

Because of this history, experience, and culture, there isn’t a building type we haven’t worked on. We already know what we’re looking for before entering your building based on a building’s age, materials, geography, program, and construction type. We know where to look, what the potential issues might be, and what likely will be behind the walls.

How do you get the benefits of a new building without building new?

An integrated modernization approach that unlocks the potential of your existing building.

Wellesley College Newhouse Center for the Humanities Renovation / Wellesley, Massachusetts

Esperson Building Interior Renovations / Houston, Texas

Washington State Legislative Building Historic Preservation / Olympia, Washington

General Services Administration (GSA), Birch Bayh Courthouse / Indianapolis, Indiana

Franklin & Marshall College Harris Center for Business, Government and Public Policy / Lancaster, Pennsylvania

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Chapel and Kresge Auditorium Renewal / Cambridge, Massachusetts

Towson University, Newell & Richmond Halls Renovation / Townson, Maryland

Princeton University, Madison Dining Hall / Princeton, New Jersey

Building Repositioning

As a leading architectural practice, Page has extensive experience in building repositioning through renovations, modernizations, revitalization through mixed-use project types and adaptive reuse of older assets in major metropolitan areas.

Our design strategies are always based on an economical, practical approach in close collaboration with owners, brokers, leasing and facility managers, marketing consultants and contractors. Through our design process, we build consensus among all stakeholders to determine optimal solutions that will yield the maximum return on investment.

Projects of this nature require comprehensive design solutions that will provide a cohesive experience for tenants and visitors to the properties. Therefore, we have experienced team members that can deliver innovative solutions within architecture, interiors, and engineering.

In the hands of good designers, the result of this creative problem solving is architecture that is generous, handsome and sometimes even stunning. Page architects carefully evaluate existing conditions and provide solutions that effectively merge old and new. And while it is often more appropriate for high-rise projects to be “fabric” buildings in cities rather than focal objects, these buildings sometimes do become local landmarks and icons.

“Page’s creativity has been transforming downtown Houston for nearly two decades in very unique projects. From the Rice Hotel to Discovery Green to Two Shell Plaza, their team continues to influence change in an exciting and positive way.”

Robert M. Eury, President Central Houston, Inc.

Adaptive Reuse

Adaptive Reuse brings together Page’s team of professionals to offer our clients a breadth of service and single point responsibility found in few other firms. The concept of Adaptive Ruse has gained popularity and increased urgency as a core strategy for sustainable growth as the demand for building rises in a world of everdiminishing resources. Adaptive Reuse requires a broad imagination in conjunction with the creative and technical expertise necessary to transform a structure originally intended for one purpose into something that may in the end accommodate a very different use. Page believes that all structures have an architectural essence that can best be revealed – regardless of the end use of the building – through a systematic, rigorous analytical process that reveals optimal strategies for repurposing. Adaptive use often maximizes the opportunity to blend old with new and to position historic resources as buildings emblematic of both their original era and the best of 21st-century design culture.

Decision Support

Page has the capabilities of providing Strategic Consulting Services to help building ownership establish priorities and clarify the latent value in existing properties. This analysis can provide valuable support to optimize new capital investment and target existing operational funds.

Site Upgrades and Public Realm

Page’s commitment to the possibilities of the public realm centers on our belief that it is in the public spaces where design has the greatest impact. Our team is adept at addressing complex projects in various contexts and on a wide range of scales. These span from the master planning of large mixed-use developments to the design of vibrant civic spaces. We view the site holistically, beyond the confines of a built structure, and are able to collegially influence our collaborators for the greater good of the project. We firmly believe that successful spaces that are well-attended and enjoyed by a diverse number of users bring value to building owners. Our collaborative process engages the public and private stakeholders from the outset of the design exploration to incorporate their views and ideas and build consensus throughout the evolution of the project.

Exterior Design

When looking at renovating an existing building, the exterior articulation is a result of careful attention to sun protection, provision of usable outdoor spaces and long term durability. Materials are chosen for their responsiveness to climate control, their local sourcing and their ease of maintenance. Site development is intended to create authentic neighborhoods and communities, often through mixed use and the formulation of well-scaled streets and public spaces.

Federal Hall National Monument, National Park Service

New York, New York

Multiple repair, stabilization, and restoration interventions are extending the useful life of this historically significant Greek Revival building. We have partnered with the National Park Service since 1990 to preserve this iconic National Historic Landmark on Wall Street in the heart of lower Manhattan. This remarkable 80,000 SF brick and marble memorial was built in 1842 to serve as the New York City Customs House and later the U.S. Subtreasury. The structure and its 3-story domed rotunda were progressively compromised and undermined by 160 years of urban growth, sustaining further damage from the collapse of the nearby World Trade Center Towers on September 11, 2001.

Our comprehensive restoration efforts include sensitive insertion of contemporary mechanical and electrical systems without damaging the building’s original fabric; renovation of exterior and interior marble masonry and windows; and repairs to the marble roof. We addressed the 9/11-related settlement problems with an ongoing monitoring system that allows our engineers to remotely oversee the building via computer. These proactive preservation efforts help ensure that this monument to liberty can continue to welcome and educate visitors from around the world.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

80,000 Square Feet

Service Provided

Architecture / MEP Engineering / Secretary of the Interior

Standards for Restoration / Analysis & conservation of historic materials / Integration of modern systems / Restoration of historic finishes / Structural analysis

Section showing adjacent subway and deformation of floor structure (shown in red line)

National Park Service, Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials

Washington, D.C

Page provided recommendations for appropriate forensic investigations and interventions to preserve two of the nation’s most significant monuments. A detailed survey of every stone of the Lincoln Memorial was undertaken to create a database of existing conditions to guide future maintenance and preservation efforts. The Jules Guerin murals were analyzed to determine the cause and extent of their damage and to provide recommendations for their conservation.

Page’s study of the Jefferson Memorial revealed emerging patterns of deterioration, discoloration, and wear of ornamental stone features; differential movement of building elements; weathering; and other conditions. Research revealed longstanding concerns regarding mortar composition, joint deterioration, and expansion control, indicating that the ongoing damagewas rooted in the original design and construction, external influences, and later modifications.

Work on the Lincoln Memorial included strategies to clean and permanently maintain the marble; installing metal drip edges at the column capital blocks; devising and implementing a non-staining lightning protection system; and repairing and replacing all copper roof elements. At the Jefferson Memorial, work included repairs to the Stylobate; surgical structural reinforcements at the interior foundations and the basement; and repairs to the leadcoated copper lining on the built-in gutters at the Portico Roof.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New York District, U.S. Military Academy

West Point, New York

The oldest continuously operating Army post in the United States, West Point’s primarily Gothic Revival campus is a designated Historic Landmark District. Over the course of more than 15 years, Page has been responsible for the preservation, restoration, and rehabilitation of many of the Academy’s most historically significant structures.

Under our IDIQ contracts, we have worked on all of the cadet barracks (350,000 GSF), as well as Grant Mess Hall; the Cadet Chapel; West Point Cemetery; upgrades to the athletic facilities; renovation of historic Building 624 to provide a Warrior Transition Unit; and investigation and stabilization of the Warner House on Constitution Island, the oldest building at West Point.

At Pershing Hall, Grant Hall, Washington Hall and Bradley Hall (the cadet barracks facing the central campus area and main parade grounds), our team provided repair and restoration of the exterior stone facades and parapets, and upgrades to the interiors for current use and code compliance. Two of these buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Rehabilitation work focused on improving the quality of housing for cadets by upgrading interior features; correcting structural deficiencies; and improving energy efficiency.

PROJECT DETAILS

Service Provided Architecture / MEP Engineering / Structural Engineering / fire protection / Historic Preservation / Historic Structure Reports / Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties

U.S. Naval Academy, Naval Academy Chapel

Annapolis, Maryland

Using a disciplined approach that involved extensive investigation of archival and historical information and the microscopic survey and analysis of existing conditions, we partnered with the U.S. Navy to restore the Naval Academy’s Chapel to its original Beaux-Arts splendor. Originally constructed in 1910 from architect Ernest Flagg’s design, 30 years of heavy use and deferred maintenance had taken their toll on this National Historic Landmark. Exhaustive investigations into the historic building fabric facilitated detailed drawings, while our extensive sampling analysis allowed us to determine the Chapel’s original paint scheme and return the interior to its distinctively ornate original design. The restored wood floors, doors, and pews are softly illuminated by the reconstructed stained glass laylight of the magnificent 110-foot high dome. Further renovations improved roof drainage; upgraded fire protection, HVAC, and electrical systems; and abated hazardous materials. Renovations were completed ahead of schedule, and the Chapel remained fully operational throughout the entire project, thanks to comprehensive construction schedules and protection and safety plans. The restored Chapel continues to serve as the inspirational centerpiece of the Naval Academy’s National Historic Landmark District.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

23,000 Square Feet Restoration National Historic Landmark

Service Provided Architecture / Engineering / Interiors

Awards

Award of Excellence, Historic Restoration, ABC of Metro Washington, 2011

Award of Excellence, ABC Western Pennsylvania Chapter, 2009

National Park Service, Charlestown Navy Yard Visitor Center

Boston, Massachusetts

To create a visitor gateway to the historic Charlestown Navy Yard and the USS Constitution, we partnered with NPS to renovate an 1804 structure. Meeting the educational, accessibility, and security needs of a visitor center required exterior envelope restoration/repair and extensive renovations of the first floor. The design takes advantage of the historic building by exposing its brick exterior walls, wood ceiling joists, and a primary structural steel girder. Many decades’ worth of non-original furred walls and finishes in the expansive space were stripped away to reveal the original materials, which were repaired, restored, and showcased in the new design. New MEP systems were carefully threaded through the building’s original fabric, and a new circulation stair was designed to promote clear and easy access for the large number of visitors. The work added a new screening building, guard booth, and walkway canopies to accommodate security screening of visitors.

All work was completed in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties and the Massachusetts Historical Commission Integrated preservation and modernization expertise creates a bright and cheerful space that easily accommodates the high volume of tourists, allowing this historic structure to continue to serve a vital role.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

9,000 Square Feet Renovation / Restoration

Service Provided Architecture / Engineering / Programming and Planning / Life Safety / OSHA Evaluation

Harvard University, Widener Library

Cambridge, Massachusetts

The modernization of this campus icon embodies many of the typical challenges facing the renewal of public and institutional architecture at a high level. New elements accentuate and celebrate Horace Trumbauer’s landmark original design, while seamlessly integrating the new program and systems necessary to ensure patron comfort, collections security, and a state-of-the-art workplace environment for staff. We initially focused on weaving stateof- the art building systems – particularly environmental controls – within the historic fabric. Restricted by the original donor bequest to working within the building envelope, the team developed an innovative strategy for the infill of two light courts. This found space now contains new circulation cores, space for mechanical equipment, and staff workspaces, topped by two signature sky-lit reading rooms New systems, lighting, fire protection, and security upgrades were seamlessly integrated into all of the historic spaces, and historic materials renewed and conserved, infusing these carefully restored rooms with the environment, technology, and finishes appropriate for a modern library and a worldclass building. All work followed an implementation plan developed jointly by Page and the Construction Manager that allowed the continuous use of the facility during the renovation.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

320,000 Square Feet

Service Provided Architecture / MEP Engineering / Interior Design

Awards

Programming & Planning, Architecture MEP Engineering

Educational Facility Design Award Merit BSA / SCUP Palladio Award Traditional Building Magazine / Restore Media

Library Building Award AIA / ALA

Educational Facility Design Award Merit BSA / SCUP

Design Award Citation Award AIA New England Chapter

Towson University Newell & Richmond Halls

Towson, Maryland

This LEED Silver high-performance modernization project breathes new life into Newell and Richmond Halls, creating a premiere student housing experience while celebrating Towson’s rich architectural tradition. The connected four-story buildings form an iconic campus cornerstone whose 93,500 GSF houses 315 students.

One addition, sympathetic to the Jacobean architecture of the University’s original structures, resolve complex accessibility issues and provide study and social spaces for students that foster a sense of community. The renovation maximizes student common areas and daylight on each floor, building student community. Further social space was added outside to improve access and security while integrating Newell and Richmond into the campus’s pedestrian network.

Page solved longstanding envelope failures through careful analysis, tracing them to the original design, poor construction materials and practices, ill-conceived additions, and errors in earlier repairs and maintenance. At Richmond Hall, cast stone window heads were selectively replaced and mullions re-detailed to increase their loadbearing capacity. At Newell Hall, the terra cotta window surrounds were similarly improved, and all parapets were removed from the eaves to improve roof drainage, without negative effect on the historic roof-lines that form the eastern face of the campus. Exterior stair towers were removed to expose original facade whose restoration has garnered several prizes.

All work was developed consistent with the State of Maryland, University of Maryland, and Towson University specific design standards.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

93,500 GSF modernization

Service Provided

Programming and Planning / Architecture / Historic Preservation / MEP Engineering

Princeton University Hamilton, Holder and Madison Halls

Princeton, New Jersey

Three historic Collegiate Gothic structures were modernized to accommodate a 21st-century residential college program while preserving their historic character. Extensive exterior repair and interior renovation improved accessibility and circulation patterns.

After the programming for Holder Hall was completed, the University initiated a change in its Residential College program.Three of its six two-year colleges – including Mathey – were redesignated as four-year colleges, requiring the introduction of new graduate student apartments into the design. Throughout the building, student rooms, bathrooms, and common spaces were renovated, and in many instances, rearranged. We depressed the floor elevation and excavated along the south façade to incorporate study rooms, student activity rooms, music practice rooms, a student lounge, and a new student art gallery.

Work subsequently addressed the adjacent Hamilton and Madison Halls which include rooms for both underclassmen and upperclassmen; administrative offices, dining halls, and common rooms for both Mathey and Rockefeller Colleges; and student lounges, campus bakery, computer cluster, library, theater, and seminar rooms.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

150,000 GSF modernization / 300 beds

Service Provided Architecture / Interiors / Programming and Planning / MEP Engineering / Historic Preservation

Awards

Design Award, AIA New York State Platinum Reconstruction & Renovation Award, Building Design + Construction Citation Award, AIA New York State Tucker Award for Architectural Design Excellence, Building Stone Golden Trowel Award, International Masonry Institute Reconstruction Project of the Year, Building Design & Construction Renovation Merit Award, New York Construction News

General Services Administration, Birch Bayh Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse

Indianapolis, Indiana

Modernization strategies invisibly transform this monumental landmark into a “machine for sustainability” that measurably mitigates the site’s urban heat island effect, decreases the building’s carbon footprint, and adds hundreds of thousands of gallons of water to the city’s supply every year.

GSA committed to making this distinguished example of Beaux-Arts architecture a highly desirable, sustainable workplace – one that was also safe, comfortable, and secure – that helps the city keep and attract jobs. Our design includes new mechanical, fire suppression, and alarm systems, new windows, and a green roof. A detailed preservation analysis of the building enabled the team to create a strategic roadmap that guided decisions about equipment locations and the sensitive threading of new systems through delicate historic fabric.

The most visible improvement is a 30,000 SF vegetative roof, located on the light-court roof, visible only from the building’s inwardfacing windows. The vegetative roof, cool white upper roofs, and rainwater harvesting system are key components of the sustainable design strategy. The vegetative roof system – one of the largest of its kind on a building listed on the National Register of Historic Places – absorbs less heat than a typical dark membrane roof and provides increased insulation, reducing the building’s cooling load.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

540,000 GSF modernization

30,000 Square Feet vegetative green roof

Service Provided Architecture / MEP Engineering / Historic Preservation / Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties Architecture / Programming

Awards

LEED Gold certified GSA Design Excellence

Award of Excellence for Historic Preservation, AIA DC, 2014 Best Project of the Year (Government Buildings), ENR Midwest, 2013

Rice Lofts

Houston, Texas

In the late 1990s, Page was tapped to repurpose the historic but long vacant 1913 landmark Rice Hotel into residential lofts. This awardwinning effort was broadly acknowledged as the project that sparked the revitalization of Houston’s downtown urban core and introduced new residential units into downtown Houston for the first time in over forty years. The 7,000-square-foot Crystal Ballroom was completely restored at that time, including detailed woodwork, cast plaster ornamentation and the hotel’s original oil murals.

This iconic building is under new ownership today, and the Page design team was again commissioned to update the interiors of the building. The lobby, common areas and all 308 apartment units in the 18-story building, now known as “The Rice,” are re-imagined with sleek and contemporary fixtures complemented by warm and luxurious finishes. The goal of the project was to make the space feel more modern and bright while respecting the building’s historic character. In addition to updating the residential units, the renovation included enhancements to its amenity spaces, including the entrance and lobby, as well as a new club, fitness facility, outdoor terrace and pool area.

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the historic Rice building, originally a 1,000-room hotel, was constructed on the site of the former Texas State Capitol before the Legislature moved to Austin. Extensive research into the building history enabled the developers, architects and designers to restore much of the hotel’s original character during the initial renovation, which afforded the property a $4.5 million federal historic tax credit.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

643,000 Square Feet

Service Provided Architecture / Interiors / Engineering / Historic Preservation

Grinnell College Humanities and Social Studies Center (HSSC)

Grinnell, Iowa

What can design do to seamlessly blend the traditional and the modern? Grinnell College’s Humanities and Social Studies Center features four pavilions – two new and two renovated – joined by a three-story atrium with connecting bridges. The new structure embraces Alumni Recitation Hall, creating a central, light-filled courtyard that looks toward the future of liberal arts education while respecting the heritage of one of Grinnell’s most treasured landmarks.

Gone are the days of teachers lecturing and students listening. The HSCC embraces the possibilities of a 21st-century learning experience. Students and professors begin by walking together along the atrium bridge, enjoying the morning light from the clerestory windows. Class convenes in the historic Alumni Recitation Hall, now fully integrated with modern technology. Students will soon head to the learning laboratories for small-group breakouts where they’ll use online tools to work with peers at other institutions. Between classes, they’ll meet up and head to semi-private breakout spaces for project work – fostering the intellectual collisions that enrich a student’s education. A mix of the old and new, the HSSC makes possible a teaching and learning experience attuned to emerging research, technology, and collaboration, while honoring Grinnell’s tradition of excellence in education.

With inclusion in mind, Page partnered with the Institute for Human Centered Design to examine how the team’s approach could go beyond responding to ADA requirements and move toward designing for the broadest possible spectrum of users. The team carefully considered users’ flow through the building to enable equitable experiences, including vertical movement by providing more elevators and locating them close to the main staircases. The design offers sensitive approaches to controlling glare and acoustics and reimagines restrooms to create all-gender spaces.The HSSC makes possible an inclusive teaching and learning experience attuned to emerging research, technology, and collaboration while honoring Grinnell’s tradition of excellence in education.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

177,000 Square Feet

Service Provided Architecture / Engineering / Academic Innovation / Historic Preservation / Modernization

Ruby Hotel

Round Rock, Texas

Located on the banks of Brushy Creek, the Ruby Hotel revives an existing mid-century house and sets two new buildings on the creekside site. The renovated house includes a full-service cocktail bar, a conference area and ample gathering spaces that spill out onto a new deck equal to the size of the house. The outdoor spaces overlook the pool, grounds and the creek, providing a beautiful view of the Central Texas landscape and creek, nestled beneath the branches of the native live oak trees.

The two new, two-story buildings contain 39 rooms, whose art and objects personalize each space and read as pieces from Ruby’s extensive collection. The new buildings are connected by a breezeway, protecting guests from the elements while keeping the grounds open and accessible. The interior finishes are done in jewel tones inspired by the mid-century era, creating a feeling of elegance and timelessness in each carefully cultivated space. The original house finishes spill over into the reception area, drawing guests into the era of Ruby from the moment they enter the hotel.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

2.9 Acres

23,507 Square Feet

39 Rooms

Service Provided Architecture / Branding and Environmental Graphic Design / Interiors

Highpoint at 2222

Austin, Texas

Developed by Karlin Real Estate, Highpoint at 2222 is a core/ shell renovation of an existing 1.1M square foot lab and research facility, originally occupied by 3M, modernized to meet the needs of contemporary workforce and creative/collaborative team-based work. Full envelope replacement includes reconfiguration of the floor plate to improve user experience with improved access to workplace areas, amenities and exterior spaces.

Phase one will transform existing buildings into over a million square feet of premium laboratory and office space. Additionally, what used to be a 3M innovation center in the middle of the campus is slated to be transformed into a 58,000-square-foot amenity hub with health and wellness uses, as well as food and beverage offerings. Also included will be a 75,000-square-foot atrium with outdoor pavilions, courtyards and games.

Exterior design is guided by human factors, resulting in a dramatic transformation that reduces the perceived scale of the building, while improving exterior views and interior daylighting. Future phases may incorporate multi-family, retail and office as well as an outdoor activities center.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

156 Acres

1.1M Square Feet

58,000 Square Foot (Amenity Hub)

75,000 Square Foot (Atrium)

Service Provided Architecture / Master Planning

The Pennsylvania State University Steidle Building Renovation

State College, Pennsylvania

Page partnered with Penn State to transform the Steidle Building – a Charles Klauder design contributing to a National Register Historic District – into a sustainable, state-of-the-art teaching and research environment for the Department of Materials Science and Engineering.

Originally built in 1931 as a U-shaped floor plan, a center wing was added in 1939. Analysis demonstrated that removing the 1939 wing would allow the addition of a new, larger infill to house highly flexible, technically-robust research spaces, with the building’s original 1931 footprint supporting less intense functions. Open bench “research cluster” suites support the increasingly interdisciplinary, collaborative research environment. Daylighting is driven deep into the building interior via a narrow, skylit atrium. The interior organization respects the symmetrical spirit of the original, but its previously dark, enclosed labs and offices are now infused with natural light and visible activity.

The modernization preserves the historic exterior while updating building systems, enhancing accessibility and life safety and providing infrastructure for current and future materials science research. The fully modernized building realizes an annual energy savings of 42% relative to the ASHRAE 90.1-2007 baseline. Using a uniquely inclusive scenario-building process, the Page designteam and PSU staff, using Page’s proprietary energy modeling software, worked together to analyze multiple priorities simultaneously, including first costs, energy performance and operational savings.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

107,000 Square Feet

Service Provided Architecture / Engineering / Historic Preservation / Planning / Lab Design / Analytics

811 Louisiana Renovations

Houston, Texas

With the imminent departure of its major tenant, the building owners embarked on a project to reposition the Houston property to attract new tenants. The extensive redesign of Two Shell Plaza draws on the classic modern lines which respect the building’s character while projecting a new Class A building image. Another important component of the strategy reorients the lobby to create a new front door – and a more prominent address for the building: 811 Louisiana.

On the exterior, creating a larger scale base for the building provides a new experience at the pedestrian level. The façade is re-clad up to the third garage floor in an elegant, dark natural charcoal stone that contrasts with the existing travertine panels above. Silver limestone flooring seamlessly transitions from exterior to interior and complements the new cladding. Metal louver canopies provide shading and signify the new corner entry at 811 Louisiana.

The entry leads into a grand lobby space with a lounge area that provides an opportunities for both visitor waiting and for casual meetings. A centrally-located security desk with concealed technology and modern finishes is highlighted by contrasting stone finish on the walls and floors. A combination of neutral and dark charcoal stone replaced the existing travertine on the walls and floors throughout. Wood veneer walls distinguish the elevator lobbies, and back-lit glass doors brighten the long spaces. The once gold-leafed ceilings have been removed and replaced with clean white gypsum ceilings and updated LED lighting. Textured glass feature walls and a light installation above the escalators provide a signature element for the building, signifying the entry of its new brand into the market.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

7,000 Square Feet

Service Provided Architecture / Interiors / Signage / MEP Engineering

“Page was able to capture our vision for rebranding 811 Louisiana and make it a reality. They have an outstanding design team.”

Darrell Kainer Vice President

Facilities Enterprise Products Company

Marathon Oil Tower Renovations

Houston, Texas

5555 San Felipe was rebranded and repositioned under new ownership with the expected departure of the building’s primary tenant. This 1983 landmark tower was transformed into a modern, sustainable, innovation hub to support Houston’s leading creative companies — designed to meet or exceed the demands of a changing workforce, today and tomorrow. The work was structured in two phases.

In the first phase the design team focused on a newly activated Lobby Lounge and Food hall. A large existing space on the concourse level used to connect the parking garage with the tower lobby was transformed into a new social hub of the building. The 6,000-squarefoot second floor lobby provides multiple seating areas, a media wall with an 11-by-22-foot screen that can display news, programming for company functions, movies or scenic pictures. A large custom artwork on fabric by Margo Wolowiec of Detroit has an abstract digital representation of Houston in muted colors embedded in it. By the escalator, which leads to the new food hall inspired dining and common areas on the ground first floor, an installation of origami-like porcelain doves by international artist Michael Pendry floats overhead. A new food hall inspired dining was created as a chef-driven, foodhall style restaurant that offers remote ordering capabilities as well as a full-service catering services. The design team transformed the traditional red granite interiors into a modern yet timeless space. A balance between hospitality and workspace drove many of the design decisions with upgrades of plaster finished walls, Blackthorne marble slabs at the elevator lobbies and  warm wood tones to create welcoming meeting spaces.

In the second phase a new 6,000 square-foot freestanding restaurant and open space is to be located on the east lawn with street front views. The open space was designed to allow for outdoor dining and events to be programmed for the new space. Designed  to be the go-to-spot for client lunches and dinners, celebrating a successful transaction or meeting colleagues for social hour.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

102,939 Square Feet

Service Provided Architecture / Programming / Interiors / MEP

Engineering / Site Upgrades / Building Sciences

Esperson Building Interior Renovations

Houston, Texas

The historic Niels Esperson building has lit up the Houston downtown skyline since 1927. It was built as a thirty-two story tower (Niels Tower) with a strong Neoclassical/Italian Renaissance style. Later in 1941, a nineteen-story Art Deco/Art Moderne annex (Mellie Tower) was built, organically connecting to the Niels Esperson tower. The result was a unique and eclectic building(s), in both its exterior and interior spaces. The project is currently up for a BOMA International TOBY (“The Outstanding Building of the Year”) award in the historic building category.

Far below the tower’s neoclassical cupola, a basement space connecting to a series of tunnels below downtown streets has been given its own revival. The design task was twofold: activate the ground level and its vacant retail spaces accessed through long and uninviting corridors between two rather ornate lobbies; and reimagine the tunnel level food court with a new escalator connection. A key challenge was to design a new space that becomes the bridge between an art deco lobby on one side, and a neoclassical lobby on the other.

The design for the lobby and tunnel level renovation creates an ‘architectural bridge’ that connects and unifies the old and new components of the building. By carefully selecting materials to complement and support the existing aesthetic palettes, the design highlights the historical components of the spaces while providing a vibrant contemporary setting.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

19,000 Square Feet

Service Provided

Predesign / Design / Architecture / Interiors / Construction Administration

Club Quarters Hotel

Houston, Texas

The former Texas State Hotel, designed by Joseph Finger and completed in 1929, has found new life as the 400-room Club Quarters Hotel in downtown Houston. Many areas of the 17-story, 173,368-square-foot building needed to be structurally rehabilitated, and the interior of the building was almost completely gutted, including all MEP systems, duct work, wiring, lighting, cast iron fixtures, and plaster walls. The existing main lobby of the hotel was restored, as was grand staircase which extends from the basement to the third level. The existing 1960’s style aluminum and glass storefront was removed and replaced with a new granite and glass façade that met the approval of the City of Houston Historical Committee. In 2015, Page was commissioned to update guest rooms throughout the hotel. MEP systems designed by Page integrated into the existing building fabric, met current codes and standards, and are easily maintainable and energy efficient. Energy savings on the order of 25% were achieved as compared to other similar facilities in downtown Houston.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

174,000 Square Feet

Service Provided

Building Assessment / Master Planning / Architecture / Interiors / MEP Engineering / Furniture Services

1801 Smith Repositioning

Houston, Texas

The former 600 Jefferson Building, which was constructed in the 1970s, is located at the southern edge of downtown Houston, an area undergoing an urban transformation. When its current owners acquired the building in 2014, multiple residential, commercial office and repositioning projects surrounding the property were underway. The prime location made the opportunity to reposition the 20-story office building irresistible. To capitalize on the growth momentum in the area, Page was engaged as a design partner to develop a new vision for this real estate asset that would increase its market value while elevating its status and leasing potential.

Unoccupied lease space on the two lowest floors provided an opportunity to create an amenity base for future tenants. To support this new function, Page designed a new two-story glass envelope that updated the architectural façade at street level. A new entrance was added at Smith Street that elevates the beginning of the user experience and also allows the owner to use the more prestigious business address of 1801 Smith. Edge lighting was added to both portals on the Jefferson and Smith Street entries to create a warm glow at dusk.

The arrival experience in the building lobby at both the street and concourse levels has been updated with a clean and modern palette of polished white Bianco Gioia marble walls and deep blue-gray honed Pietra del Cardosa sandstone floors.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

57,000 Square Feet

Service Provided Architecture / Interiors / FF&E

Kresge Auditorium and MIT Chapel

Cambridge, Massachusetts

Designed by renowned architect Eero Saarinen and completed in 1955, these iconic structures were envisioned as signature set pieces anchoring MIT’s West Campus development – a precinct where student life, the arts and spiritual well-being add a humanistic dimension to MIT’s prowess in science and technology.

The primary purpose in renovating both Kresge and the Chapel was to provide increased weatherability, better energy performance, and increased safety, comfort and accessibility – while reinforcing and enhancing the historic character of each building

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Size

50,000 Square Feet

Service Provided Architecture / Branding and Graphics

Awards

Boston – The American Council of Engineering Companies of Massachusetts (ACEC/MA) has named Simpson Gumpertz & Heger and Page Architecture and Engineering as a winner of its 2017 Silver Engineering Excellence Award for work on the MIT Kresge Auditorium and Chapel in Cambridge.

AIA 2017 American Architecture Awards