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Boyd Andrew Community Services
Adaptive Reuse | Behavioral Health | Medical Offices | New Construction
Helena, MT
8,500 sf
Adaptive + Aggressive In-fill
This project is an aggressive adaptive reuse of an existing one-story building set on Helena's historic Last Chance Gulch. Not only did this project adaptively reuse the existing building, but also added two stories on top!
Being respectful of The Gulch's history, the main façade facing Last Chance Gulch took proportional cues from the historic fabric of the area.
The 'back' of the building, while still a prominent façade, was allowed to take on less of the historic fabric and have a more 'playful’ form. Like a good 80's mullet, it's business in the front and a party in the back!
Overcoming the Sandwich Effect
Other than placing two new floors on top of an existing one-story building, the largest challenge to overcome was the sandwich between the two adjacent three-story buildings, eliminating the possibility of natural light along the north and south sides of the site.
The design solution focused on passive sustainable concepts, with daylight harvesting becoming the main driving force.
The large daylight monitor bisecting the building in the east west directions allows daylight to penetrate two floors as well as all interior spaces.
Honesty in Materials
The interior palette of exposed structure, raw wood, exposed mechanical systems and a simple combination of natural materials symbolizes the work that Boyd Andrew does daily.
The materials are easily maintained and authentic allowing Boyd Andrew to focus on providing their addiction counseling services!
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