OpenNorfolk — A Toolkit to Help Restaurants and Small Retail Businesses During COVID-19
Work Program Architects is leading an effort to OpenNorfolk, as cities and towns around the world try to imagine living with COVID-19.
Renovations to Scope Arena
New pods for concessions and restrooms open to both the interior and exterior concourse and plaza.
Rendering of concourse showing new restroom/concession pods that bridge between the interior and exterior.
429 Granby Street
When Grow Interactive renovated their new office at 427 Granby Street in 2010, they performed one of the finest renovations the street has seen in recent years. At that time, Mel and Thom were still with other firms, and Peter was building their butcher block furniture out of his Granby Street workshop. This collaboration brings together a metric ton of mutual respect and great friendships while promising to do something tremendous for downtown Norfolk: the front portion of this new space will be designed as the premier gathering place in Downtown Norfolk for some lucky entrepreneur to use to launch a brand new business.
The 429 property has been vacant for many years and will be thoroughly gutted and rebuilt with offices and workspace for Grow in the rear, and a restaurant, complete with rooftop dining, occupying the front. The goal for the restaurant is to push the boundaries of facade permeability and customer-pedestrian interactivity in downtown.
Studies and the design process are ongoing, but we promise that this will be a space that helps to redefine Granby Street.
Downtown Norfolk Re-Imagining, v3
This is the third iteration of the Monticello Place Facade Study.
APPROVED! The PLOT. A Place for many stories.
The PLOT: final approval GRANTED by Norfolk Planning Commission. Work Program Architects has taken a leadership role in the design and promotion process for this exciting pro bono project being championed by the Downtown Norfolk Council. Thom will be the speaker for their monthly member meeting in the large auditorium at Nauticus, next Wednesday morning, February 1st at 8am. Information can be found here. Please attend if you have interest in the project or would like to lend a helping hand.
The Boathouse: Re-Imagined
Out now is the second issue of AltDaily’s publication, Cannonball City. Inside, Thom and John Vitale have collaborated on an article about re-imagining the Boathouse, Norfolk’s legendary rock venue. To read about it, go grab a copy of Cannonball City, and for a longer version of the article, AltDaily’s post.
Coincidentally, the release of this article has found the Boathouse demolished. Bad news aside, this will lead to two other projects. Stay tuned!
Downtown Norfolk Re-Imagining
WPA was hired to re-imagine this building on Monticello Avenue. We came up with two proposals. One option is a block-long arcade while the other splits the ground-level facade into individual storefront entrances.
The Plot
WPA has been heavily involved over the last 6 months with an ad hoc committee assembled by the Downtown Norfolk Council tasked with bringing life to an empty lot at the core of our downtown. The site is the future home of a Westin hotel and conference center that has been delayed by the economic downturn. Rather than let it sit empty and forlorn, we have put together plans to activate the space (on a very limited budget) largely using reclaimed materials.
The overall plan provides for:
-A stage and bleacher seating for programmed and impromptu performances
-Tables and seating for socializing
-Parking space for Food Trucks
-Recreation in the form of half-court basketball
-Shade
The reclaimed materials include:
-Deer rubbed trees from the city nursery
-Planters from the previous Granby Pedestrian Mall
-Used shipping containers
-Used shipping pallets
-Discarded sidewalk pavers
