We are pleased to announce the Texas Society of Architects’ 2024 Design Award winners. After reviewing 251 entries, jurors Roberto de Leon, FAIA, of de Leon & Primmer Architecture Workshop in Louisville, KY; Gordon Gill, FAIA, of Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture in Chicago; and Celia Esther Arredondo Zambrano, of Tecnológico de Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico, recognized 15 projects.
The winning projects will be featured in the September/October issue of Texas Architect magazine. Thank you to everyone who entered, and congratulations to all the honorees!
2121 South Lamar, Austin
Chioco Design
– photo by Chase Daniel
2121 South Lamar is a complete renovation of a 1980’s era two-story office building. The client wanted to bring new life into the building with a challenge to reconfigure how the space was divided to accommodate future tenants. The existing building had limited natural light and low ceilings on the ground floor, and the renovation brought in more natural light. To match the tallest gable and simplify the overall form, the roof was partially raised allowing for loftier interior spaces. The building’s exterior is clad in thermally modified ash wood and brings warmth to the restrained materials palette of blackened steel wall panels and perforated steel guardrail. The thick battens give order to the façades by providing a system for organizing fenestration. The new second floor balcony takes advantage of the three large heritage Live Oak trees and offers a serene setting for the tenants. The main entry to the second floor is light-filled and integrates oak floors and stairs with white oak paneling that takes its cues from the exterior board and batten installation. At the top of the stairs sits an office lobby with built-in upholstered seating and small amenities bar. The wood slats provide filtered natural light to this tranquil waiting area.
Austin ISD Sánchez Elementary School, Austin
McKinney York Architects
– photo by Leonid Furmansky
This renovation project of an urban school is located in a rapidly gentrifying Latino neighborhood adjacent to downtown Austin. Neighborhood pride and community spirit embodied by the school arose as critical themes during extensive dialogues between the design team and local representatives. The concept of linkage evolved from these discussions which inspired the reorganization of the building’s circulation. A spine connects new exterior canopies at existing entry points to major interior gathering spaces, binding important episodes and places together into the student’s daily experience. Connection of the building’s first and second floors was achieved by repurposing an underused internal courtyard into a learning stair — now a vibrant gathering space at the heart of the school. The space created by the learning stair extends the seating of the dining area to allow community events while providing a direct link to the upper grade-level learning areas and library.
Linking the past and future of the school was an important project goal. Key school artifacts such as murals, mosaics, and portraits were diligently cataloged and integrated into renovated spaces. Additionally, the design team creatively reinterpreted existing motifs and symbols in the design of new spaces. An existing double-headed serpent mosaic, symbolizing transformation, inspired undulating banded slats which wrap communal spaces and extend through the roof creating a landmark for the modernized school. The original hexagonal tile façade pattern was brought into the building and reinterpreted at larger scale for ceilings and walls, while the scrolled frieze motif from the existing entry formed the basis for floor patterning. Throughout, strategic use of colors, patterns, and textures added richness on a tight budget. The resulting project celebrates the heritage and values of the community while looking towards an optimistic and empowered future.
Bahamas Cottage, Harbour Island, Bahamas
Max Levy Architect
– photo by Charles Davis Smith, FAIA
Located on a bluff sixty feet above the harbor, the site is covered in dense tropical growth. The design attempts to bring the island’s profuse color and sunlight into the life of the house. Four “light chimneys” are spaced along the house’s roof ridge. These forms, glazed on one side, each face a different compass direction. Inside, they fan out into painted lightwells: yellow for the east-facing light chimney, green for south, pink for west, and blue for north. Over the course of the day these lightwells brighten and dim in unison with the sun’s journey and the passage of clouds. Exterior walls are reinforced concrete block plastered gray, with an interior lining of wood siding painted white. The cavity between these two shells allows all the windows, doors, and insect screens to be retracted into the walls. Manually operated accoya sunscreens roll on exterior brass tracks. The floor is cut coral stone throughout. In addition to the one-bedroom house, two outbuildings include a guest room and a cart storage building.
Block 185, Austin
Pelli Clarke & Partners + STG Design
– photo by Jason O’Rear
Home to Google’s new Austin headquarters, Block 185 is a defining landmark for Austin and the city skyline. The design team aimed to craft a building that addressed the clients’ goals: attract top talent to Austin and establish a distinctive landmark on the skyline and street level for Austin’s downtown core. Key design drivers included creating spaces that foster a healthy, flexible, and collaborative work environment. The building features outdoor terraces, optimal views, access to daylight, tall floor-to-floor spaces, and versatile work areas. The ground floor, vibrant with eclectic dining and retail, connects seamlessly to the popular Second Street shopping and entertainment district. With more than 20 percent dedicated to amenity spaces, the design prioritizes the tenant experience.
The tower’s tapering form responds to challenging zoning requirements and neighboring bodies of water. The outdoor terraces at every level give a subtle impression of a sail billowing in the wind and offer an immersive setting with waterfront views. These overhanging balconies, along with horizontal and vertical sunshades, aid in reducing solar heat gain by shading the floors below. The façade is composed of high-performance glass and custom metal mullions in a tartan pattern, more pronounced on the northern side and underscored on the others. The subtle transition between patterns gives an individual, but cohesive presence from multiple viewpoints.
Block 185 has achieved LEED Platinum. The project team worked with local sustainability officials to ensure the tower met the highest standards in the City of Austin, exploring proactive steps to protect Austin’s quality of life now and for future generations.
The Branch School, Hightower Middle School, Houston
Kirksey Architecture
– photo by Slyworks Photography
The Branch School is an independent private school in west Houston for preschool, elementary, and middle school students. Their 21-st century learning approach and curriculum focuses on developing skills that encourage students to respectful future leaders. The design team and The Branch School worked together to create a new master plan and middle school building that accommodates the school’s growth and approach to project-based learning.
The new two-story, 29,000-sq ft net-zero building is designed to meet LEED Silver certifications. Sustainability is a driving concept in the school design that helps it respond to climates and allows the building to be used as a teaching tool. Classrooms, studios, and maker spaces give students various areas to experience project-based learning and collaboration opportunities. The project site is developed to facilitate learning both inside and outside and includes outdoor learning spaces, a walking trail, a garden, a weather station pavilion, and a teaching courtyard.
Chertecho Tree Tower, Fredericksburg
Dietert Design Studio
– photo by Kurt Griesbach
The Chertecho Tree Tower was designed to survive in the wild. The clients requested a small cabin that took advantage of the views across the Pedernales River Valley. This small, three-story dwelling allows guests to experience the forest at three distinct levels: the under-story, the canopy, and the sky view. Initially, skeptical of a rooftop deck providing thermal comfort due to the extreme heat of Central Texas, the clients were inspired to pursue the project when the architect showed a sketch of a thin tower among the trees with an origami-like roof. With shading, protection and rainwater collection while providing a comfortable perch, this quad-gable roof is a simple form draping over the tower to shade throughout the year, while still allowing extraordinary, 360-degree views across the landscape.
Driven by the nature, the small cabin’s design gives occupants an immersive experience into the natural world. The building is oriented to the cardinal directions to take advantage of the sun path and predominant breezes. Each façade elevation uniquely addresses the challenges and opportunities of the site. No trees were removed for construction, the small footprint was nestled into the forest in place of a previously existing portable building. The building fits into the landscape providing a feeling of connectedness with their surroundings.
Chroma, Fort Worth
Ibañez Shaw Architecture
– photo by Dror Baldinger, FAIA
Chroma takes advantage of a prominent location in the city engaging the urban fabric and inviting the community to a singular experience on the interior. At Chroma, the optical sales area is not internal, it extends from the mass of the building as a glass box. The entry is marked by a progression of white steel angle frames placed along an elevated walk; a gradual immersion into the experience as one approaches the building. The geometry of the steel elements continues in the glass curtainwall and reveals itself on the interior as the structure of the display shafts. Free-flowing display fixtures offer a dynamic exploration of a curated eyeglass frame collection set among views of the adjacent cultural district and downtown beyond. At night, the display shafts are lit with colors of the brand, and the illuminated structures are presented to the community like a sculpture encased in glass. The experience of the space is projected as a bold brand to the exterior. The building was completed for $1.8M, including all display fixtures and fixed furnishings. This was achieved using tilt-wall concrete building system typically used for warehouses. The concrete panels are used structurally with primarily glue-laminated beams free-spanning between panels. The vertical shelf displays were made with bent steel plate and round glass shelves sourced from mass produced glass trivets. Simple steel fabrications and solid surfaces were used for the counters and desks. Window openings were kept to a minimum on the west and south sides of the building, which houses the optometry testing and exam rooms, spaces which require restricted daylight.
Ghost Hangar, Utopia
John Grable Architects
– photo by John Grable Architects
This 32,000 sq ft structure was designed to house a living collection of vintage WWII era aircraft. The remote site and program presented a unique design challenge — how to transport and erect a 120 ft clear span structure while minimizing the impact on the landscape. The Quonset hut, developed during WWII, provided a form silhouette minimized the building’s impact on the landscape and horizon, while also providing ample space for the fully operational aircraft stored within. The precedent structural system was converted to a rigid steel frame in order to achieve longer spans while drawing on the historic building profile. The spring line-to-saddlebag connections provides the necessary vertical clearance, as well as visual fragmentation of the longest facades.
The steel roof structure and board-formed concrete buttresses provide unquestioned durability, while reclaimed barnwood siding is pre-weathered ready to handle the climate at hand blending harmoniously with the environment. Upcycled HVAC and natural and mechanical ventilation, paired with ample natural light, round out the build’s response to the harsh Texas climate. The passive light shelves, deep roof overhangs, and cupola openings in conjunction with the Thermasteel envelope to render the unconditioned hangar volume a luminous shaded refuge even in the hottest summer. This building is not only era appropriate from an aesthetic standpoint but with age-old sustainable principles.
Hotel 1928, Waco
Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture
– photo by Cody Ulrich Photography
The Karem Shrine Temple in downtown Waco has been transformed into Hotel 1928, reviving the landmark building after a two-decade long dormancy and restoring its legacy as a gathering place for Wacoans. Hotel 1928 offers a contemporary hospitality experience that reflects the client’s lifestyle brand, thoughtfully integrated within its unique circa 1928 Moorish Revival-style architecture. The program comprises 33 guest rooms, three restaurants, a ballroom venue, and a rooftop terrace within the existing 59,143 sq ft structure. As Karem Shrine Temple is a contributing property in the Waco Downtown Historic District, the renovation was coordinated with the Texas Historic Commission and NPS. To preserve character-defining features, the design team employed creative approaches to meet program requirements while respecting original layouts and finishes.
Arched openings, clay tile roofs, and carved Freemasons and Shriners decorative emblems were cleaned and preserved. Existing terrazzo flooring, concrete floors, plaster walls, and key arches and trim intermingle with new design elements. Previously under-utilized spaces were reclaimed, generating usable square footage without expanding the building’s footprint. The flat roof was converted into restaurant use by adding a roof terrace atop a new sunken structure that maintains the original roof profile. The partial basement that once housed the coal chute is now a library with a double staircase and 20-foot ceilings. New systems improve energy performance and bring the nearly century-old building up to code. The ballroom ceiling was restored and reinforced with additional structure, while new MEP building systems were integrated. Since existing conditions dictated room layouts, each guestroom is unique. The historic Ceremony Room could not be permanently altered, so the design team conceived a 12-person suite with custom millwork that partitions sleeping quarters.
Hotel 1928 provides a home-away-from home that transports guests to an exotic, faraway place. For Wacoans, its transformation represents the return to public use of a building that has held significance as a gathering place throughout the city’s history, and another milestone in the revitalization of downtown Waco.
River Bend Residence, New Braunfels
Lake|Flato Architects
– photo by Casey Dunn
Overlooking the Guadalupe River, River Bend is a home designed to sit lightly upon the land, minimizing disruption to the site and existing trees. Envisioned as a home that embraces the outdoors, the residence is composed of four structures housing the separate functions. While one structure houses the kitchen, dining, and living areas, a second houses the primary suite, creating a private escape. A third structure functions as an art studio, and the final structure serves as a carport, which was designed to be adapted into future additional living space. Corten siding was used on the exterior for its robust qualities and minimal maintenance. The two primary structures are located on a relatively steep slope and are primarily supported by piers to minimize excavation, reducing the impact on the site. Only the back third of the buildings on the sloping portion of the site sit on grade, and these areas were carefully located to minimize tree removal in construction. Only six trees were removed to build all four structures, minimizing the impact on the abundant wildlife habitat. The three conditioned buildings are located above the surrounding canopy in order to provide greater access to the prevailing wind patterns and enhance natural ventilation. Skylights provide balanced daylight, allowing for a lower amount of glazing on the exterior walls.
As a retreat for a retired couple, the house was designed to provide beautiful spaces to accommodate their daily routine with intentionally small storage capacity as they downsize. The artist studio accommodates their interests in painting and photography, doubling as a guest house when hosting friends. The landscape around the buildings is intentionally minimal and indigenous to reduce the need for maintenance and to reflect the intent that these structures have been very carefully placed to minimize the impact on the forested hillside.
Shenandoah House, Lexington, VA
SCHAUM/SHIEH Architects
– photo by Adam Rosen
Shenandoah House, a home and writer’s retreat, unfolds over a slope of the Allegheny Mountains in Virginia. The open, expansive views and surrounding rolling hills, paired with the challenges presented by a steep site, inform the overall design: a long, airy plan sitting atop the ridge. The three-bedroom home organizes spaces along a single corridor aligned with the contour of the hilltop site. Rooms extend out from this central spine, some embedding into the hillside and others facing the views to the horizon. The plan creates garden pockets between each space on both sides of the home. The design takes the typical logic of a pitched roof and grounds it in the undulating nature of the site by rounding the peaks and rotating the roof structures, creating the image of an irregular rolling roofline. The roof emphasizes slopes of the surrounding Allegheny Mountains. The windows that frame either end of the 120-foot-long hall create a telescope effect, focusing at one end on the dense forest and the other on the surrounding meadow. The windows and doors frame the site and the gardens that slide between rooms, while also creating a physical connection to the landscape.
Inside, the sculptural roof informs the organization of each room. No fixtures interrupt the ceilings; lighting emerges through slots at the ceiling edge. The quasi-furniture objects provide texture across the home through their materiality: one is wood, another is stone, and the other is concrete. Locally sourced soapstone punctuates the fireplace volume, while bamboo clads the sprawling floor. Techniques of self-shading, efficient mechanical systems and insulation, durable materials, and passive cooling from cross-ventilation help the house meet low-energy use targets. Modest in its sole elements, the expression of the house emerges in the interplay between its components and its alignment with the surrounding landscape.
SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park, Inglewood, CA
HKS
– photo by Nic Lehoux
Located at the former Hollywood Park racetrack, SoFi Stadium is the centerpiece of a new 298-acre mixed-use development. Los Angeles Rams Owner/Chairman and SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park developer, Stan Kroenke challenged the designers to create a memorable piece of architecture and unparalleled destination worthy of the world’s entertainment capital. The open-air venue is the first indoor-outdoor stadium constructed and the NFL’s largest at 3.1 million sq ft. Situated under one canopy, three state-of-the-art venues can simultaneously host different events and will reimagine the fan experience. The architecture is informed by extensive research to create an authentic Southern California expression and experience. The sweeping coastline and the beauty and strength of the Pacific Ocean contribute to the clean, yet dramatic curves of the stadium’s architecture that reflects the region’s indoor-outdoor lifestyle. The stadium’s translucent roof, seating bowl, concourses, and landscape were sculpted and designed to create the feel of an outdoor venue while providing the flexibility of a traditional domed stadium.
SoFi Stadium is designed as a year-round community destination and provides much-needed open space for Inglewood. The project will help revitalize the city of Inglewood and boost overall tourism revenue by attracting world-class events. Since its opening, SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park has hosted some of the largest sports and entertainment events on record including Super Bowl LVI, which was won by the venue’s home team, the Los Angeles Rams. Beyond the stadium, Hollywood Park’s public spaces, landscaped trails, and lake are open to Inglewood residents and visitors year-round. The development is a vibrant destination with local community events such as festivals and job fairs.
Sudor Sauna Studio, Houston
CONTENT Architecture
– photo by Cesar Bejar
The design augments the embodied experience of visitors by providing subtle transitions that gradually separate them from their everyday lives. These transitions include spatial elements, gradations in light, and soothing materials. The design focuses on sensual and experiential qualities that enables visitors to feel more in-touch with their own body. The space provides private rooms where visitors can sweat within a personal sauna, reset in cold-plunge pools, and cleanse within the showers. Visitors check in at an entry lobby, before proceeding to a ring of circulation that offers access to the private spaces beyond. As visitors move through the space, they experience a deliberate separation from the world outside.
Upon entry, guests pass through thirteen-foot-tall cypress doors before encountering the front desk, a veined block of stone, beneath an expansive vaulted ceiling. Windows at the entry fill the space with natural light. A thickened wall forms a threshold between the day-lit entry and the darker corridor beyond. As visitors pass through this threshold, slender cove lights along the wall illuminate the path’s edge, revealing the interior wall’s texture. The corridor’s curve gradually reveals the subsequent private spaces, generating a sense of exploration. Within the curve of the corridor, the cool hard surfaces predominant in the lobby give way to softer, warmer materials. Vertical slats of locally sourced cypress wrap the outer wall of the path, providing a sense of warmth and comfort. The slats clad both the walls and the doors to the private saunas, concealing their entries. As guests move along the path, the wood floor ramps upward slightly, elevating each space before reaching a peak outside of the bathing spaces. Guests experience a slight climb as they approach their individual room and then descend as they move back toward the daylight that slips in from the exterior.
Texas A&M University Southside Rec Center, College Station
SmithGroup
– photo by Wade Griffith
Texas A&M University has the largest student body in Texas and one of the largest in the country, with more than 69,000 students enrolled at its flagship campus. Solving a need for expanded recreation services, this new satellite recreation facility helps alleviate overcrowding in the main recreation center, offers more student employment opportunities, and makes recreation more accessible. The new Southside Rec Center features strength and conditioning areas, multi-purpose courts, a bouldering wall, a group exercise studio, and administrative support.
The facility enhances the ecosystem of student wellness by creating an active hub at the edge of campus and making recreation accessible to students living in the adjacent 11 residential halls. The design reinforces the connection to student life through a grand entry plaza anchoring the major pedestrian path from student housing. Large glass openings showcase the energetic recreation program along the primary façade. The main canopy extends south working with the existing live oaks to provide shade for fitness spaces and a sidewalk that pulls the campus into the activity of the courts, lobby, strength and conditioning high bay, and a dramatic outdoor fitness terrace. The clear parti consists of two high bay spaces (multi-purpose courts to the north and strength and conditioning space to the south) that flank the central support bar of the main lobby, bouldering wall, and locker rooms under the floating movement of the “white box” containing group fitness, offices, and cardio mezzanines. The Southside Rec Center has seen approximately 50% increase in daily visits from an average of 8,500 visits/week in fall 2022 to 12,800 visits/week in fall 2023.
Uchiko, Houston
Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
– photo by Chase Daniel
Inspired by the central hearth of Japanese farmhouses, Uchiko presents an intimacy, which feels old and new at the same time. Quality and artistry are introduced with hand-crafted natural, worn materials. A strong timber-latticed entry moment creates warmth and procession. The rough material is manipulated in a refined manner to create an unexpected arrival experience. Custom-designed, eroded cast concrete light shades welcome guests at the front entry and carry dappled light through the two main dining areas. Wall coverings, created from original works by artist Camille Warmington, bring color to the space with rich shades of blue. Muralists Alfredo and Vera Montenegro took inspiration from the Warmington piece to draw the color up through the ceiling, which was carved away to expose the double-height space at the entry and mezzanine. Reclaimed walnut floors are layered with white oak and cedar furnishings and brick and clay tiling. Molded Venetian plaster and precise curves create a softness in the space. Brass and bronze features add luxurious detailing alongside leather upholstered, custom banquettes inspired by the work of Brazilian modernist Jose Zanine Caldas.
The dining room is punctuated with a large private dining area as well as a chef’s table featuring a large, blue fringe light fixture. The front dining area is anchored by a lush patio and bar that embrace the activity of the lively Post Oak neighborhood while still offering an intimate setting for diners. The space is welcoming and approachable while maintaining the high caliber of design consistent with the Uchi family of restaurants.
Congratulations to all the winners!