Role
Co-Design Lead
LA Project Manager
Graphics & Visualization
Cost Estimation
Construction Documentation
Construction Administration

How can an existing city icon become an iconic destination within the urban fabric? This challenge was posed to the design team for the renovation of the 24-story Clayton on the Park apartment tower.

Through a collaborative design approach and unique placemaking strategy, the design and client teams collaborated to reimagine the historic residential tower as a gateway to the city, offering a unique lifestyle opportunity for its residents and an iconic destination for the City of Clayton.

Taking advantage of the tower’s prime location at the southwest corner of downtown, the space was envisioned as a city-wide bicycle hub with adaptive reuse of public open spaces and a kinetic sculpture that welcomes people into the city. The new entry plaza is flanked by native vegetation to south and a raised terrace to the north. The arrangements creates an informal stage for street musicians and entertainers to perform; drawing people together to enchant their brain and influence their emotion.

The addition of a coffee shop/cafe on the ground floor of the tower helped to solidify the idea of the space as a critical piece of the urban fabric, as a destination, as a place for hellos, as a place for goodbyes, as a place. The kinetic sculpture was placed at the center of the plaza space to encourge interaction. The sculptures draw is powerful, beckoning children of all ages to investigate and tap into their imaginations. On a summer afternoon, this power is most evident. Children turning the piece as fast as they can, teenagers sitting inside, adults timidly scrutinizing, and everyone else on the street simply watching the events unfold.

In addition to the ground level improvements, the rooftop amenity space was also rejuvenated. The space now features an outdoor kitchen, fire pit and lounge seating with panoramic views of downtown St. Louis

Although the project began as a modest rejuvenation effort. It soon blossomed into the first link in a chain of adaptive reuse, diverse, and socially equitable urban open space projects winding through the heart of Clayton; stretching from the Forsyth Metro stop in the east to the newly renovated Shaw Park in the west.