Ameera Azeez
The three-story structure at 311 Third St. was built in 1920 and has been home to various businesses. In 1984, architects David Lake and Ted Flato established their firm on the second floor of this historic building and ever since they have expanded their workspace steadily to take over the entire structure. They soon got the opportunity to complete a wholesale renovation of the 22-545-sq-foot building, without displacing any of their employees.
Lake|Flato had the option to raze the structure and create something new, however they recognized the potential of adaptive reuse. By repurposing the existing structure, not only could they create a more functional workspace, but they could also embody their sustainable values.
Named “Living the Dream”, this project required Lake|Flato to use powerful digital tools. The firm leveraged Revit’s 3D modeling capabilities and Autodesk Forma’s wind and microclimate analyses, in tandem with other latest technologies, to achieve their sustainable design goals.