Andy's makes it fun to be a kid for a while.This 3,400 square foot storefront renovation for a popular frozen custard company’s home office works to extend street life into the interior and capture this family-owned business’ identity. The design solution organizes the program and re-engages the street through lighting, color and perspectival views from the deepest parts of the space. Limited to $25 per square foot, the attitude toward the project was one of multiplicity. Design decisions were made that perform multiple functions with as few moves as possible.The design solution focuses on a folded “wrapper” organizing the space into thirds to permit views and admit daylight from the street. The “wrapper” extends to the rear of the space and defines a break area with a connection to the exterior. Worktables on wheels can be used for large group meetings and presentations, while smaller meetings are conducted in the conference room behind the reception area. An “office bar” is centrally located under the wrapper and provides a place for collaboration and supply storage. The existing building shell is painted white while the “wrapper” is painted red in reference to a bowl of cherries, a trademark topping of the client’s frozen custard.The “wrapper” allows for an existing pressed tin ceiling and large storefront windows to be maintained while concealing existing overhead plumbing lines and ductwork. Aluminum awning windows salvaged from another project were rotated 90 degrees and used as casements to admit north light to the workstations, giving each workstation individual control of daylight and ventilation. Glass salvaged from the previous tenant space was reused as a viewing portal in the private office. A salvaged pendant light is suspended above the conference table. Translucent polycarbonate barn doors define semi-private spaces without sacrificing daylight.Exposed steel surfaces, including the reception desk with a water-jet cut slogan, are left in their natural state and finished with a carnauba-based wax. Custom work surfaces consist of paper based fiber composite tops on salvaged steel-framed bases. Steel angles bolted around existing columns support recycled wood fiber board shelving and conceal strip fluorescent lighting above and below the cabinets. This provides direct lighting on the work surface and indirect lighting under the “wrapper”.With existing loft apartments above, the ground floor ceiling space was left cluttered with exposed mechanical and plumbing lines located along the central column line. The limited budget directed the solution toward making use of the existing plumbing and mechanical systems, which inspired the “wrapper”. The introduction of this new element provided acoustic absorption within the existing, overly reverberant building shell. Fluorescent strips located on top of the wrapper indirectly light the tin ceiling. Wall mounted fixtures supplement the indirect lighting on one side and reinforce the perspective from the street, while task lighting is utilized at each workstation.The relocation of this small office from a banal suburban office building to this pedestrian oriented streetscape provides the owner with a renewed connection to the community. This simple solution to providing a collaborative work environment enables its users to engage with the architecture and each other. It really does make it fun to be a kid for while.
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