TA24-J F-Pages - Flipbook - Page 93
The re-coated brick and eclectic material palette blend the previous complex with the new.
Henry describes the project as hugely collaborative between Farrell Architects, the owner, and LRK, to name a few. “The owner had the vision to save
the shopping center, which was incredible,” says Henry. The shopping center
did not close down during construction, with LRK keeping the existing clients
in mind and working with them to ensure they could remain open while the
new center took shape.
When The Hill 昀椀rst opened, its anchor store was the Austin-based green
home improvement chain TreeHouse. At 25,000 sf, it’s the biggest tenant
space on the site. Lake|Flato Architects worked on the concept for TreeHouse,
and when LRK took the reins, it was obvious that green energy was going
to be the main driver of design. “It’s net positive, so it adds energy back to
the grid,” says Henry. “The south roof slopes to provide shade from the sun,
which opens the clerestory windows to the north light. There are photovoltaic
panels on the roof, and saving the oak tree was a big in昀氀uence on the L-shaped
design.” TreeHouse shuttered its doors in 2018. Its vacancy would be 昀椀lled
by Movement, a climbing gym that takes full advantage of the enormous
space. Maybe Dallas was more ready for chalked-up hands and tiny shoes
than green living.
One of the greatest challenges of working with the existing buildings was
the compromised brick walls across the complex. To wrestle back moisture
within the envelope, LRK covered the existing buildings with tinted waterproo昀椀ng, but the original 1970s brickwork is still visible. A notable feature is
the rounded edges of doors, windows, entryways, and other openings in the
brick walls. LRK chose to leave these features visible despite the addition of
new cladding on much of the exterior. Another advantage of recoating the
brick was the opportunity to showcase artwork, with murals by 12 artists on
display. In the center’s comparatively short second life, some of the art has
already been changed as the complex develops and grows.
The largest obstacle to the project, and arguably the most important, was
the regrade required. The existing site plan did not allow LRK to execute
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