On The Drawing Board
Architects from around the country discuss the design trends of the moment and those of the future.
Lara Fuller

Development Design Group has created the look of The Peterson Companies’ National Harbor project in Washington, D.C.

Tracking Trends

The development of lifestyle or mixed-use centers is a trend that has been growing in popularity over the past several years. More and more centers are being designed to fit in with a consumer’s lifestyle, as opposed to just providing a place to buy goods and services. “Enclosed malls and traditional power centers are continually becoming less prevalent,” says Steve Ruth, executive vice president with Perkowitz + Ruth in Long Beach, California. “The preference is for the hybrid concept, which brings together large and medium format tenants with neighborhood, restaurant and entertainment uses.”

These days, shoppers demand more and architects are designing the newest projects accordingly. “As always, the customer drives the trends,” says Greg Moe, director of retail architecture with GSBS in Fort Worth, Texas. “What the customer wants today is an enhanced shopping experience that includes food, entertainment and other uses.”

MBH has designed Town Center at Levis Commons in Perrysburg, Ohio.

Retail projects have evolved to include other types of uses as both developers and consumers recognize the benefits of having a range of services in a single development. Businesses are able to feed off of one another and the consumer is able to save time by finding multiple uses in one place. Also, in a mixed-use development, as opposed to a standard all-retail development, there is a greater chance that the project will truly become a part of the fabric of the community — a place where people spend their free time. “There is a definitive trend toward more engaged, interactive, organic destinations that address and embrace their architectural and cultural surroundings,” says Roy Higgs, CEO and managing principal with Baltimore-based Development Design Group (DDG).

MCG is designing Grand Elk Crossing, an 80,000-square-foot center in Granby, Colorado, for Pelican Bay Development.

When designing a center to be a destination and focal point of the community, residential components often play a significant role. When there is a base of consumers that are living amongst the other uses, it brings new life to the center. “The importance of including residential in mixed-use projects is the resulting energy that people living above or within the development bring to the project,” says James Ryan, chairman of JPRA Architects in Farmington Hills, Michigan. “Residential as part of a retail development also promotes the lifestyle image by supporting the diversity of entertainment, e.g. restaurants, bookstores, spas, household goods and specialty foods.”

Adds Moe: “I see the trend towards mixed-use development continuing very strongly. The experience of waking up Saturday morning and going downstairs to a sidewalk café for coffee can’t be duplicated by retail models we saw in the last half of the 20th century.”

Atlanta-based Greenberg Farrow is currently working on a project in Queens, New York, that offers both retail and residential uses. Rego Park will feature 624,286 square feet of retail space and 318,170 square feet of residential space. “One unique aspect is the mixed-use nature where both components, residential and retail, are significant rather than one being an accessory to the other,” says John Clifford, senior vice president and principal with Greenberg Farrow.

Piemonte at Ontario Center in Ontario, California, designed by Architects Orange, is a 64-acre master-planned project will feature 791 residences, along with retail, dining and office space, and a sports and entertainment arena.

True To Life

No matter which components or uses are included, most architects have found that the most important aspect in retail and mixed-use developments is authenticity.

“Developers are seeking an architecture that inspires, creating a unique ambience and a strong identity,” Randall Stone, group manager and associate in the Dallas office of Fort Worth, Texas-based Carter & Burgess.

However, in their quest to recreate the feel of a ‘town center,’ some architects and developers are creating cookie-cutter developments that don’t have any connection with the surrounding area. “There is a proliferation of the open-air, Main Street-style appearing all over the country, including multiple examples in larger cities,” says Thomas Porter, principal with Atlanta-based Thompson, Ventulett, Stainback & Associates (TVS). “This style includes eclectic and historical recall and is starting to become very similar from project to project. This isn’t to say that there are not great examples of Main Street architecture being done around the country, but these successful designs are based on authentic contextual design, not on stage set design which lacks permanence and authenticity.”

Notes Ryan: “Designers who try to replicate historic or regional architecture invariably produce less than authentic designs. The shopper is looking for authenticity, convenience, safety, diversity and a memorable and enjoyable experience.”

The more that a center is designed to fit into the fabric of daily life, the greater the chances of it being successful over a long period of time.

The 1.7 million-square-foot Creekside project in New Braunfels, Texas, being designed by Carter & Burgess, will include retail, a resort hotel, housing and be adjacent to a 1.9 million-square-foot medical campus.

Architecture Abroad

The desire to have a central shopping area, with more than just retail stores, isn’t just a concept that Americans are asking for. Architects have seen the trend towards lifestyle developments appearing all over the world. “The fact that the industry is starting to embrace mixed-use projects is a significant trend, both in the United States and internationally,” says Porter.

One project that exemplifies the international mixed-use movement is Plaza Norte in Santiago, Chile, designed by TVS. “Based upon the client’s (Mall Plaza) stated desire to provide a town center that would serve the community, this project contains not only a mix of retail uses like high fashion and big box tenants, but also other project types, including office and cultural facilities,” says Porter. “These uses are planned around a large public plaza that includes fountains and other amenities that provide a sense of place that was lacking in the community.” The 1.8 million-square-foot project features retail space, restaurants, a museum, library and performing arts center.

In Canada, Dorsky Hodgson Parrish Yue is designing The Village at Deerfoot Meadows in Calgary, Alberta. The project, one of Canada’s first destination lifestyle centers, will include a mix of retail, restaurants, residential and entertainment uses. “The Village at Deerfoot Meadows incorporates a traditional vernacular distinct to Calgary with an eclectic, contemporary shopping center format,” says Espinosa.

In Turkey, DDG is designing Istinye Park, a 796,240-square-foot center that will be a combination outdoor lifestyle center and traditional enclosed mall. The centerpiece of the project is the Grand Rotunda, an arena-like space beneath a scalloped/segmented roof structure. The ‘canopy’ encloses a food court, cinema, themed retail and an amphitheater.

One of the recent developments in Dubai has taken the mixed-use center one step further and turned it into a true shopping destination. “The Mall of Emirates has defined a new term in shopping and that is the ‘shopping resort,’” says Jay Matthiesen with Good Fulton & Farrell Architects in Dallas. “At that mall, you can stay at the hotel, shop or ski — on a six-course downhill ski slope in the middle of the desert — which is the total irony of it all. You can dine, you can do everything you need to do, and it’s a destination shopping resort. It’s a vacation of sorts.”

Difficulties In Design

While the new retail and mixed-use centers are being designed to simplify the life of the consumer — offering multiple uses in one convenient location — the popularity of mixed-use projects has complicated the life of the architect. “The effect on our business is that we have to be experts in all of these uses, not just retail,” says Moe.

“Mixed-use formats are also forcing us to combine distinct fields of expertise, such as residential and commercial, into a single project, which by tradition have always been independent focuses,” says Alex Espinosa, partner and director of design commercial studio with Cleveland-based Dorsky Hodgson Parrish Yue.

“Just by its very nature, mixed-use projects are more complicated than single-use developments,” says Porter. “This results in a need to understand the various components, such as retail, office, residential, cultural facilities, etc., so that the combined designs are successful as individual usages while contributing to the project as a whole.”

Because all of the elements of a mixed-use center must work synergistically, focus must be given to all aspects so that the center is able to thrive. “Mixed-use cannot be forced,” says Jack Selman, senior partner with Architects Orange in Orange, Calif. “It requires that the architect understand residential and retail design requirements.”

The residential component of many of the new mixed-use centers is often what poses one of the biggest challenges, as it requires another level of planning and design. “Mixing residential above street retail adds a new layer of responsibility to the architect’s services,” says Ryan. “Usually, the retail developer partners with a residential developer, creating the possibility of two owners with different criteria. The blending of vertical circulation, plumbing, mechanical, and proprietary parking needs of the different uses, not to mention the storefront and ‘lobby address’ identity, is no small task when planning for the two uses. The rapid growth of this development type has resulted in expanded services and scope of work for the architect.”

JPRA’s project for Simon Property Group, The Domain, located in Austin, Texas, is a project where retail uses had to be combined with office and residential. In addition to 350,000 square feet of retail, multiple restaurants and 82,000 square feet of office space, the project also includes 400 residential units. “It exemplifies current trends in type of development, mix of uses and architectural paradigm,” says Ryan.

Another issue that has arisen more often in recent years is the public/private partnership development. Handling a project like this adds a whole other aspect to the design and build requirements, though not necessarily in a negative way. “The rise of popularity in public/private partnerships is also creating another opportunity — that of incorporating buildings with cultural or civic uses into a retail project,” says Darrell Pattison, chief strategic officer/director of design with KA Architecture in Cleveland. “While this can sometimes result in longer delays due to financing issues and construction phasing, on the plus side, incorporating public uses can lead to greater financial participation on the parts of cities and towns in the forms of underwriting infrastructure improvements and offering tax incentives and abatements for the developer and tenants.”

KA is currently designing the Steel Point Development, a public/private partnership between the City of Bridgeport, Connecticut, and the development team, Bridgeport Landing Development. When complete, the mixed-use project will include 1.1 million square feet of retail, restaurant and entertainment facilities, 2,100 residences, offices, a hotel/conference center, a 300-slip marina and yacht club, and a public esplanade along the waterfront.

A Meeting Place

Lifestyle centers are being developed everywhere — from small towns to large cities. And though the areas might differ, there are common threads that run through many of the developments. “We are seeing a lot of consistency with more and more communities across the country expecting and promoting centers with a higher level of design quality,” says Ruth. “Some are part of the existing downtown fabric, or perhaps an extension of an existing mall. Others are town centers amidst suburbia, or part of a master-planned community. Nearly all focus on quality of life and creating outdoor meeting and congregating spaces.”

“It is interesting to note the disregard of climatic conditions to concentrate on the common belief of good public space,” says Gill. “The need for outdoor public amenities and direct access to shops is as prevalent in Southern California as it is in the Midwest.”

Perkowitz & Ruth created the design for a demalling project that created Bella Terra, a 770,000-square-foot outdoor center in downtown Huntington Beach, California.

A majority of the lifestyle and mixed-use centers being created today include an area for entertainment or activity. “The creation of public gathering and high activity spaces in retail projects that are traditional to a village setting or urban core are becoming common place,” says Joseph Smart, principal in the Newport Beach, California, office of Alameda, California-based MBH Architects.

The 387,000-square-foot Vineyard Village in Euless, Texas, designed by GSBS, is a lifestyle center that offers multiple uses in an outdoor environment. The center also uses pedestrian walkways and landscaping to encourage movement and cross-shopping and to enhance the overall experience.

“It has become increasingly important to provide outdoor community gathering space, which adds credibility to a true lifestyle center,” says Allan Renzi, principal with Cleveland-based Richard L. Bowen & Associates (RLBA). One of RLBA’s current projects involves adding an outdoor food and entertainment area to an existing mall in Buffalo, New York.

A Move Towards Modern

Though each region of the country has an individual style, such as Mission-influenced architecture in California or traditional brick or colonial styles on the East coast, there is also a move toward more contemporary architecture in all areas. “There are more contemporary design approaches that transcend regions,” says Selman.

“Now the tendency is more modern in many markets,” says Greenberg Farrow’s Clifford. “Even the neo-traditional language is taking on more modern or industrial traits.”

Adds Pattison: “There is a style emerging, particularly in projects including a mix of uses, which builds on the more traditional look by incorporating more contemporary elements.”

Espinosa has also noticed the combination of traditional and contemporary. “Developers are also exploring new, more eclectic venues where contemporary components are interwoven with traditional motifs,” he says.

TVS has seen a movement toward more contemporary design that uses bolder forms and colors. “Contemporary design will be a trend in the future,” says Porter. “Done correctly, this type of design can be concepted to fit a variety of contexts and geographic locations.”

The more modern look of these retail and mixed-use centers is achieved through the use of a range of materials and finishes. “I think we will continue to see more and more engineered finishes and components, as well as specialized structural elements,” says Higgs. “As retailers continue to become more and more ambitious and creative, we try to keep pace, creating ever more energized and innovative storefronts, graphics and lighting.”

Also as a part of the ‘modern’ movement, architects are also placing greater focus on the environment. This is evident through the addition of green space at a large number of new projects. And many architects and developers are even taking green space a step further by using environmentally friendly materials and designing projects to meet LEED specifications. “The green movement and eco-buildings are becoming more and more of a trend,” says Matthiesen.

Good Fulton & Farrell’s latest project, the 2.3 million-square-foot Park Lane in Dallas, near NorthPark Center, uses native materials and lots of landscaping in its open spaces. The firm is designing the project to incorporate existing trees and is also using mature, replanted trees to give the project a sense of permanence.

“Probably the biggest trend we are anticipating in the future is movement toward sustainable design through the LEED certification,” says Porter. “Most developers we are talking to today are at least considering sustainable design.” TVS has designed several LEED-certified projects and is currently working on a retail project that will achieve the LEED Silver Certification.

“Sustainability involves a real growth potential, as this is still an emerging science in both the building industry, as well as the regulatory and administrative side,” says Clifford. Greenberg Farrow’s project in Queens is being designed with the environment in mind. The project features a green roof over a significant portion of the development, as well as access to public transportation.

“There is high awareness today for sustainable design and environmental consciousness,” says Ruth. “Development teams are providing a spectrum of mixed-use lifestyle centers in both under-served urban cores and suburban greenfields, and as architects, we must consider the added value of new technology in building design and amenities.”

Trends For Tomorrow

As evidenced by the number of mall conversions and the creation of new lifestyle centers, the old enclosed mall is definitely a thing of the past. “Enclosed malls are an endangered species,” says Moe. “Customers want a more authentic shopping experience, reminiscent of downtown main street environments.”

Adds Espinosa: “The prevalence of the traditional enclosed mall format has been replaced by open-air centers, primarily because of the strong social orientation inherent in a lifestyle format.”

Consumers now have higher standards when it comes to spending their shopping dollars, and architects and developers are aware of that. “Clients demand a higher quality of design than in years past,” says Gill. “The strip center mentality of shed roofs with signage bands as the main architectural feature are from a bygone era. Clients (and developers and tenants) understand the importance of good architecture.”

Design trends will be interesting to watch over the next few years as architects become more creative in their quest to create centers that satisfy developers, retailers and the general public.