Commercial Architecture July 2018 - 6

DEPARTMENT

the architects

Multifamily Ideas
Elevate Boutique Offices
Ideas from large-scale residential
developments enhance opportunities in
smaller, high-value commercial properties.

Eugene Flotteron, AIA, Principal
CetraRuddy

Above. This rendering shows how the18-story, full-height glass, 412 West 15th
St. property fits into Manhattan's Meatpacking district skyline. The property
offers adaptable floor plates, outdoor amenity areas, and space for tenant-focused ground-floor retail.

hese days, going to the office doesn't just mean
going to work. Increasingly, today's office buildings also offer a social experience and amenities

that make employees feel "at home," active, and entertained. Many of these are creative, boutique commercial

Left. The 320,000-sq.-ft. Corporate Commons Three property, shown in this
rendering, on New York's Staten Island, includes a restaurant space, school, an
urban rooftop farm, and landscaped walking trails around the campus.

magnets that serve this growing need as the concept of a
work-life balance gives way to work-life integration.
Behind this trend are several factors. First, the workplace needs to evolve and adapt so that companies can

ing, media, and information (TAMI) tenants increasingly

ment, people have more reasons to stick around and

stay competitive. Second, new and competitive com-

gravitating toward this neighborhood.

build community. In the workplace, that means employees are more likely to feel engaged, and that they're in an

mercial-office-development designs take a deliberate approach to meeting lifestyle expectations, often adopting

MAKE OUTDOOR SPACES HAPPEN

environment that helps them do their best work. Adding

winning ideas created for the live-work-play enclaves of

For multifamily properties, incorporating outdoor

a restaurant and a fitness center, for instance, turns office

today's most successful multifamily residential develop-

amenity areas such as terraces and roof decks is a

buildings into dynamic social campuses.

ments.

longstanding prerequisite that is increasingly valuable.

Just as with any apartment or condominium building,

This also holds true for workplaces.

Creative, thematic ideas can add even more value.
The 320,000-sq.-ft. office building by The Nicotra Group

it takes a thoughtful mix of amenities and smart design to

As an example, 412 West 15th St. includes six terraces

LLC, Staten Island, NY (officespacestatenisland.com),

create desirable office space. Here are three key trends and

that invite tenants outdoors year round. The exterior spac-

under construction on Staten Island, Corporate Com-

strategies that can be applied to multifamily and office

es not only maximize views of the city and the Hudson

mons Three, includes a restaurant space, a school, an ur-

developments.

River, but also add tenant-specific outdoor conference

ban rooftop farm, and landscaped walking trails around

and lounge amenities that are rare in larger urban office

the campus. For a building such as this in a corporate

GO BOUTIQUE

blocks. It's almost always worth the time and effort to

office park, these services add value by offering conve-

To drive sales or leasing, successful multifamily prop-

make a rooftop accessible or to turn a setback into a space

nience for employees and contributing to a true sense of

erties often use sophisticated branding to build a pow-

that can be occupied.

community.

erful image and lifestyle narrative around a property.

The opportunities may be considerable in converting

With smart choices, architects and designers can en-

The same approach works in all levels of the commer-

historic buildings, as with Walker Tower, the Art Deco

sure that workplaces offer these crucial opportunities for

cial-office sector. Savvy developers are conceiving or

former telephone exchange building in New York City.

socialization, collaboration, and interaction. CA

adapting smaller buildings as co-working locations or

In this case, CetraRuddy and JDS Development Group,

single- or multi-tenant boutique workplaces. The ap-

New York City (jdsdevelopment.com), adapted the orig-

Eugene Flotteron, AIA, is a principal and director of architec-

proach is often a leasing incentive for small or mid-

inal wedding-cake setbacks to create large terraces on up-

ture at CetraRuddy, an international award-winning integrated ar-

sized tenants who see the physical workplace and its

per floors. The sweeping skyline views help developers

chitecture, planning, and interior-design firm based in New York

amenities as an expression of their company identity.

rent offices just as much as they help sell homes, because

City (cetraruddy.com).

For the Boston-based Rockpoint Group's (rockpoint-

they deliver a lifestyle premium that complements shared

group.com) boutique office tower at 412 West 15th St.,

interior spaces and offers a potential point of differenti-

in Manhattan's trendy Meatpacking district, CetraRud-

ation.

dy's design includes appealing features such as adaptable

Interview With
Eugene Flotteron

floor plates, outdoor amenity areas, and space for tenant-

GET ACTIVATED

focused ground-floor retail. With an 18-story, full-height

The best commercial-office developments also activate

glass exterior, the building also forms an iconic presence

amenity areas with curated, tenant-focused services.

Learn more about transferring residential ideas to

on the neighborhood's skyline. The idea is to create a ver-

The idea is akin to adding a coffee shop to the lobby of

office spaces in our interview with Eugene Flotteron

tical campus that can serve as a complete lifestyle work-

an apartment building or designing the mailroom as a

at commercialarchitecturemagazine.com/architects.

place. It's an ideal approach for the technology, advertis-

socializing space. By creating a live-work-play environ-

COMMERCI A L A RCHI T EC T URE

JULY 2018

commercialarchitecturemagazine.com

http://www.cespacestatenisland.com http://www.jdsdevelopment.com http://www.cetraruddy.com http://www.rockpointgroup.com http://www.commercialarchitecturemagazine.com/architects http://www.commercialarchitecturemagazine.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Commercial Architecture July 2018