2022 Summer Issue - 92

solution file
To assist in conceptualizing UnCommons,
Matter Real Estate Group brought in
consultants to do " human experience "
research to better understand the
priorities, sensibilities, needs, and
desires of the millennial and generation
Z workers who would live, work, and play
in the mixed-use development.
anchored by office space rather
than retail.
" You have half a million square
feet [46,500 sq m] of office, and
2,500 employees on campus, " he
says. " That in itself creates its own
vibe. "
But Matter wanted the project to
go beyond conventional placemaking.
The firm wanted to focus on
what Stuart describes as " a sense
of belonging " and use the built
environment to help remedy the
malaise of contemporary life-the
loneliness and alienation of an
existence in which people spend
too much time glued to screens
and get bombarded with divisive,
toxic messages from social media.
" People are suffering at a level
that's historic, across all levels of
mental health, " Stuart observes.
He argues that " maybe the time
is now to start thinking about and
considering the role of the built
environment in creating belonging,
connection, and community in an
authentic way. "
To assist in conceptualizing
UnCommons, Matter brought in
consultants to do " human experience "
research to better under92
URBAN
LAND
stand the priorities, sensibilities,
needs, and desires of the millennial
and generation Z workers who
would live, work, and play in the
mixed-use development. The firm
spent six months holding workshops
with companies of various
sizes, seeking insights.
" Once we assimilated all that
information, we then engineered
that, " Stuart explains. " What are
the operative dimensions that we
can bring to bear on our project to
address these new trends or needs
that we have discovered? " The idea
was to break with the traditional,
top-driven way of conceiving projects,
which Stuart says " is not as
welcoming or as inclusive as we felt
the world was moving. "
The sudden emergence of
COVID-19 in spring 2020 forced
Matter not only to postpone its
scheduled groundbreaking party,
but also to take a hard look at the
project's premise. To Stuart, the
question was not whether people
would return to the office, which
he views as essential for fostering
creativity and innovation, but " what
new behaviors will be embedded
into the workplace? " And what
SUMMER 2022
would they need to feel comfortable
and safe? To gain additional
insights, Matter brought in more
experts-cultural anthropologists,
health experts, neuroscientists, and
others-and made additional modifications
to the plan.
Creating Walkable
Urbanism in an AutoCentric
Area
It was up to global architecture and
design firm Gensler to turn all that
information into a project.
" This sense of belonging and a
sense of community-that people
are stronger together than they
are in separate little boxes-were
really important things that we
were talking about before the pandemic, "
explains Darrel Fullbright,
principal and design director for
Gensler's office in San Diego.
" But when the pandemic hit, they
became even more highlighted. "
One of Gensler's challenges was
to create a walkable neighborhood
in a city where-with the exception
of the Strip-there aren't many
pedestrians. To accomplish that,
the architects drew inspiration from
older European cities such as Paris.
" They're designed around the
pedestrian, while Las Vegas and
a lot of the cities of the West are
designed around the car, " Fullbright
explains. " We kept the scale really
tight, to make it very pedestrian
favorable, which is also part of the
wellness idea, to have people walking
around. "
As a result, Gensler's plan for
the UnCommons includes narrow
streets that bring the buildings
closer together, and in the process
create shadows that shelter
pedestrians from the Nevada sun
and make walking a more pleasant
experience.
" It lets the project shade itself, "
Fullbright says. " You know, we're
out in the desert, so that's absolutely
essential. "
Gensler also created a primary
outdoor gathering area as the heart
of the project that is protected both
from the sun and wind, essentially
creating a microclimate that offers
people both an outdoor workspace
and a refuge in which to get a
break from the stresses of their
daily schedules.
COURTESY UNCOMMONS
2022 Summer Issue

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