2017 Directory

35 Location: Denver, CO Size: 55,386 sq ft Category: Residential Freight Residences Dynia Architects The Phoenix Carney Logan Burke Architects Award of Citation Freight Residences is the newest addition to the mixed-use TAXI development, situated between the train tracks and the Platte River. This 48-unit, 4-story urban housing development was designed for pro- fessionals and families with urban sensibilities. The one-, three-, and four-bedroom units are configured as a stacked, repeating module of 18-foot sections. All but the one-bedroom units offer two floors of living space with through-unit ventilation and light infiltration. Each unit has an operable glass garage door that opens the living spaces to the gardens on the first floor, generous private balconies on the fourth floor, and to incredible mountain views from the third- floor one-bedrooms. The Phoenix is the rebirth of an Architects’ family retreat destroyed by a forest fire. Located in central Wyoming on a south facing slope within an aspen and pine forest, the original building was a classic log cabin with a gable roof. The cabin was constructed in the late 70’s on a building pad scratched out of the slope within the floor of the forest. In 2013, human-caused fire swept through the southern slopes of Casper Mountain destroying the forest and 36 structures. The architect’s family retreat was lost. In 2016, the Phoenix rose on the site of the former cabin.... In response to family patterns of use in the old build- ing, the program for the Phoenix was reconsidered. On a site with challenging accessibility, no electricity, no water and no cellular service, the Phoenix is con- ceived as a folly in the landscape; a viewing platform, a fire lookout, a shady spot for a picnic, a remote crash pad for limited stays, a place to become detached, This urban residential block is unconventional, having a single corridor located on the third floor providing access to the one-bedroom and three-bedroom units. Generous windows at each end of the hallway offer a street-like experience. The four-bedroom units are accessed through private entrances on the first floor of the building, either from the car-port parking area in the back or through the garden terraces on the front of the building. This configuration of the first and second floors offers privacy, creating a row house sensibility rather than the feel of a double loaded apartment block. These two-story units allow light and air to flow from east to west. The utilization of day lighting and natural ventilation has positive health benefits while reducing energy costs. The building’s HVAC systems use efficient domestic hot water heaters and energy efficient fan coils. On site storm water detention basins are built into the landscaped terraces off of the east side of the building, providing natural irrigation and filtering excess water. Freight Residences taps into the amenities serving the entire cam- pus. The TAXI site features a unique shipping container pool, a fitness center, multiple community gathering areas, green spaces, a restaurant, coffee shop, urgent care health facility, and an early childhood education facility. A pedestrian bridge across the Platte River will soon increase the walkability of the neighborhood by directly connecting TAXI to the Brighton Boulevard corridor. The creative recreation room on the ground floor of Freight Residences is an additional amenity space for the building and the surrounding TAXI community. Separated from the elevator vestibule by a hanging plastic strip curtain door, the creative recreation room was designed as a learning and play space. The vibrant orange room features a large garage door, connecting the space to the outdoors. Location: Casper Mountain, WY Size: 1,000 sq ft Category: Small Project Award of Excellence a place to commune with the landscape, a place for contemplation. The new building is perched at the edge of the old building pad, touching the slope very lightly and creating an edge for the court where the old building stood. The ruins of the old fireplace were retained for memory, to create a vertical marker for the site, and as a gathering point around an outdoor fire. The new building is organized in open and closed zones: the open porch enjoys access to dramatic views of the landscape framed via simple rectangular openings in the galvanized building shell. The closed zone provides shelter, a wood stove for warmth and meal preparation and storage of necessities. Standing dead charred timber was incorporated in the structural system to connect the new building with the forest and to create a lasting reminder of the story of this place…The Phoenix has risen.