Interior designers create modern spaces in old buildings to suit users

yzirapogyg.wordpress.com
Instead, officials took a more cost-effective approach, turning to a row of historix buildings adjacent tothe company’s Humana spent more than $20 million on a nearly two-yeart project to renovate and reconstruct the buildingse to meet its needs. Interior designer Ann Swope put the finishing touchesx on the design of what the company now calls the HumanaqUnity Building, which opened in 2007.
Swope, presidenrt and CEO of , said the Humana project representsw what a growing number of clientws wantthese days: a design that pairw the modern needs of companies with the historixc nature of an aging While Swope said she can’t estimate how much of her businesds comes from work in historicv buildings, she has seen growing interest as more companiess become aware of the Leadershiop in Energy and Environmental Desig and other sustainability initiatives.
The key to a successful project with ahistoric building, Swope said, is considering its purposer and occupants when designing the By understanding the contex of a building, designerws can ensure a more cohesive and useful outcome for its “You marry those components with the persoh who is purchasing it, occupyingf it,” Swope said. At the Humana Unity Building, now knownm as HUB, this method came into The building is actuallyfour buildings, datingt to the late 1800s, that look separates from the outside but are open and connected on the The building is not open to the public and is meant to encourage employee interaction, collaboration and impromptuy meetings.
It also providezs a respite area and employee cafeteriwa for the morethan 2,000 employee who work in the Humana which is connected to the HUB. Swope Designm Group worked witharchitect , food-services vendors and Humana employees to choose interior finishes and furniture that would further express the intent of the Swope said. By leaving brick walls and steelcolumns intact, the architect triecd to convey the openness of the origina l warehouse structures. Although the warehouses provided amplde space for the meeting area theclient wanted, there were some practicalp challenges that came from working with oldet buildings.
“It’s a real challenge for us to make thesd buildings work the way we work Swope said, adding that because the buildingws were narrow with few windows, renovators had to add skylights to brinb in more natural light. And makingb four buildings function as onewas difficult. The storiews of the buildings were not meaning mezzanines and ramps needed to be addec to allow workers to move from building tobuilding easily. came across a similar structural hurdle when workinyg on a yearlong project to update TheMadrid Building, at 545 S. Thirr St. Built in 1929, the building is on the National Register of Historic Placew and was constructed in the Classical Revivaparchitectural style.
It now houses and one of its Because theMadrid Building’e original windows were left in planning office space around them was a bit of a according to interior designer Linda Hubbuch. who said work with historic structures makes up about 20 percent ofthe firm’sz work and is “absolutely growing.” At the partitions had to be rethought because they couldn’f be built across the windows, she said. But on the plus the windows provide a lot ofnatura light, an important quality in she said.
The Madrid Building retainz many of itsoriginal elements, which was important to Interlock said Jay Mackin, vice president of the Even though the windows are a bit drafty, Mackin he was dedicated to keeping them because of their historical significance. As a result of that decisioh as well as choosing to use originapl materials such as marble andterrazzk floors, the cost of the project was highe usual, Hubbuch said.