By Nigel F. Maynard Parking garages are a necessary evil in city life–practical but hardly attractive. This apartment project, designed by David Furman Architecture, effectively hides an eight-level parking garage even as it creates a much-needed vibrant streetscape within a mixed-used office development.
Located between Bank of America’s 1,000,000-square-foot, mixed-used office complex and its parking garage, the project was done in two movements. The first phase consists of a five-story, 45-unit apartment building that conceals the garage deck. The second phase: an eight-story, 264-unit building.
“The problem with phase one was that we had a 360-foot-long elevation at two different levels,” says project architect Anderson Pearson.
The solution? Townhome units with two-story bays that give the elevation vertical massing and two garage openings featuring bowstring trusses that help tone down the impact of entries on the streetscape.
For phase two, the architects used a dual-layered plan with luxury rentals above. Retail and restaurant components are located on the outer layer, and an inner layer features residential units that wrap around a hidden courtyard. Units in the project range from 650 to 2,200 square feet and rent for $1.25 per square foot.
| Photo: Tim Buchman Photography |
Category: Rental apartments; Entrant/Architect: David Furman Architecture, Charlotte, N.C.; Builder: Bovis Lend Lease, Charlotte; Developer: Post Apartment Homes, Atlanta; Landscape Architect: Post Landscape Group, Atlanta