The FileVine tenant improvement design is a story in editing. Through subtle moves towards functionality and a series of added human scale details, the vast open backdrop of a re-gutted warehouse was transformed into a lively, warm office suite. The site is a wonderful blend between new and old elements, encompassing the back wall and shell structure elements of an old warehouse within Sugarhouse along with the existing Toys R Us loading dock. The building owner had invested in creating a clean slate with the addition of a storefront wall of glazing at the back of the building, creating a set of retail fronts facing a side street.
During our initial walk through, we caught a glimpse of the existing warehouse back wall, a gnarled composition of split face block, rebar, cuts, infills, and the former loading dock wall of the once thriving Toys R Us. In the creation of a new office building, the previous owners had covered everything in new sheetrock, and created a shell space for retail spaces, including a new elevator and fire rated staircase. Our team wanted to capture the ingrained, embedded beauty of the previous life of the building, and decided to expose the existing wall in all its imperfect glory.
Our exposed wall became the focal point of the space, taking the form of a dramatic two story feature wall that could be seen from across the street. In our imagination, partners would entertain future clients in the neighboring restaurants and bars before deliberately taking the ‘long road home’: using the crosswalk directly in front of their front door, revealing layered dusk scenes within their space on either side of the dramatic two storey logo feature. We created a simple formal language of massings within a shell along the back, utilizing the full 25’ height floors as a dramatic backdrop to simple, straightforward room arrangements.
These simple moves were offset by large, dramatic spatial openings and relationships, creating rooms within rooms within light, and incredible subtleties of light, shadow, and screening. To tie the two floors together, we opened up the former fire escape stair and created thresholds within a series of grounding masses, housing breakroom areas. We made use of view corridors to pull users through the space, culminating their journey in the large training and gathering space upstairs, situated with almost 600 feet of unobstructed views east and west, offering both sunrise and sunset dramatic moments.
