We’ve Moved to Riverplace!
by Mary-Margaret Zindren, Hon. AIAMN, EVP/Executive Director
Our move to Riverplace Main Hall, Suite #238 – a cozy nook designed by Alchemy – is a big change – and already proving to be a good one.
It is set within massive complex of airy, bustling community spaces, redesigned beautifully during the pandemic by Perkins&Will and set in an urban neighborhood alive with students, remote workers and their dogs, and people meeting up for coffee, a drink, or dinner and/or a movie. During every day of our first six days at Riverplace, we have run into members of the architecture community at FRGMNT coffee shop, which is just below our office in the atrium. Each time, they came over for a visit. It’s a great new reality.
The downsizing of the office space itself reflects much of the way work has changed in the last decade. At only 750 square feet, the new space is three times smaller than the former Crown Roller Mill space. It celebrates the joy of architecture, the value of design, and presents a compelling and legible story about what architects do to make a difference. The strategy of re-use is both low-carbon and a materially low-cost solution that both conserved resources and raised community involvement. We hope it creates inspiration for similar process-focused work.
The office is the result of collective efforts of Alchemy team members and other architects, designers, students, and industry partners who sought out materials for creative reuse, offered up remnants, and shared ideas. Alchemy was joined in design workshops by community members Kyjuann Cager, Assoc. AIA, Steven Esparza, Assoc. AIA, and Tyler Whitehead, AIA.
It’s also the result of an adaptive contractor – RJM – rolling with a process that required more flexibility and communication to effectively utilize reuse materials.
There is a unique architectural element that defines the space: a wooden scrim made from reclaimed Minnesota hardwoods, procured by Jacob Mans, AIA, founder of the Decentralized Design Lab – scrap that would otherwise have gone unused. Fabricated in collaboration with University of Minnesota architecture and interior design students Ben Christenson, Sawyer Eidem, Fullah Hazazi, Reagan Olm, and Nora Rosemeier, the scrim enclosure is both substantial and light. It divides the common space from individual workspaces while also providing porosity and sightlines throughout the whole.
The lights affixed to the ceiling above the scrim are a mix of those simply left in place from the previous tenant and high-quality Juno track lighting harvested by LumberStash salvage during the demolition of the Juut salon in St. Paul. Repurposed kitchen flooring was provided by Elea Healy Remodelists. Carpet is from remnants purchased at ReStore, and butcher-block and Richlite countertops, plywood, furnishings, sink, and faucet were sourced at other reuse centers and from Alchemy’s own stock.
The Wabi-Sabi nature of these rough and mismatched items is balanced out by refined pieces provided at deep discount by Cheryl Fosdick, Assoc. AIA’s Lum Studio in Duluth – pendant and table lamps and a Blu Dot table. There is also a quiet space made of Kalwall – donated by W.H. Hall – and a salvaged sliding door from a reuse center that can be closed off to dampen sound. Donations of cabinet pulls from the Knobbery and primer and paint from Diamond Vogel helped to finish off the space. And we repurposed desks, chairs, storage, and the refrigerator from the CRM office.
The interwoven pieces of wood and the found materials of various types and textures create a whole that is both eclectic and intentional, and surrounds an open meeting and conversation space at the center. This scrim room is both ordered and informal, with light filtering through the ceiling like that in the forest. It is our nest. YOUR nest. A nurturing safe haven meant to hold staff, members, students, and visitors alike.
Many, many thanks to Alchemy team members – Geoff Warner, FAIA, Souliyahn Keobounpheng, Rowan Freeman, Michelle Wood, Assoc. AIA, and Eric Winter, AIA – to RJM, and to all who put their creativity, expertise, time and materials toward this effort! And special thanks to our staff team and to Deputy Director Amber Allardyce, Hon. AIAMN, in particular, who organized all aspects of the move.
Stop on by – we look forward to seeing you!