Macy’s Adaptive Reuse
Kenneth Rodrigues & Partners, Inc. 2017-2018
My role: site analysis, feasibility study, conceptual design, design development, model design and crafting.
The existing two-story Macy’s department store, which was built in 1960s, is located in downtown area. In accordance with the city's Downtown Specific Plan, the client envisions the adaptive reuse of the outdated store so that it will continue to contribute to the vibrancy, connectivity, and overall success of the city’s downtown. The new design will keep the existing two stories and build four stories in addition, developing into a six-story truly mix-used building: ground floor retail, restaurant and market, second to fourth floors creative office, and fifth to sixth floors micro housing and green roof. The new architecture will cut an open atrium through the center of the building to provide more pedestrian space and connection to the train station transition center. The biggest challenges include how to fit in three different functions in existing structure grid, how to layout circulation and building cores, and how to keep a relatively uniform exterior look for all three function.
