Project Details
- Project Name
- Makers Quarter Block D
- Location
- CA
- Architect
- BNIM
- Client/Owner
- L2HP (Lankford & Associates, HP Investors and Hensel Phelps)
- Project Types
- Office
- Project Scope
- New Construction
- Size
- 52,974 sq. feet
- Year Completed
- 2018
- Shared by
- Hanley Wood Media
- Project Status
- On the Boards/In Progress
Project Description
FROM THE ARCHITECTS:
Block D reimagines the urban office building as a tactical framework, a ground-up structure for experimentation in the public realm. Created as part of the new Makers Quarter development downtown San Diego’s East Village, conceived as a community with a collective ethos inspired by the Maker Movement, Block D builds a creative environment for entrepreneurs and artists to challenge convention while reinforcing a sense of community.
Designed to redefine the northeastern edge of downtown, Block D is the product of a tactical urbanist approach to development. Nestled among some of the city’s most diverse and culturally rich neighborhoods, the project embraces the fabric of the East Village. From the area’s legacy of furniture building and auto repair to modern co-working spaces and digital fabrication labs, Block D builds upon the neighborhood’s maker spirit. This community effort to establish the identity of Makers Quarter was grounded in the re-appropriation of public spaces and abandoned lots that gave way to the idea of an office building as an extroverted development.
Reflecting this process, Block D was designed as a collaborative and kinetic office hub. Opening to the surrounding context, the design encourages occupants to expose and share their “makers” process with the neighborhood. Public spaces are designed with the use of exposed vertical circulation systems, collaborative balcony spaces and an open entry courtyard. Flexible office suites utilize natural ventilation through motorized windows and garage doors on each level. The high-performance façade was designed with two different types of active shading systems to enhance daylighting and promote individualized control within tenant spaces. With a nod to the pop-up galleries and community venues that brought the project to life, Block D allows users to display art and animate the façade, giving life to the architecture itself. In turn, the façade reflects the character of its occupants.
The first office project to be completed in the five-block Makers Quarter development, and the first new multi-tenant office building downtown in over a decade, Block D marks the beginning of the next employment hub for the region. Its highly flexible and sustainable features have attracted future tenants who are interested in a workplace that supports flexibility, human wellness, and significant energy cost savings.