Market: Community Environments

Farmdale

Farmdale is an innovative farmworker housing development in Woodburn, Oregon. A replacement for a 1970s Rural Development complex, Farmdale seamlessly blends into the surrounding residential fabric by breaking up the massing to resemble a series of gabled homes. To break down the scale even further and embrace the context of the neighborhood, vibrant colors of the exterior mirror the warmth of a family neighborhood. Farmdale fosters a sense of community and connection, offering expansive outdoor spaces that include playing fields, gardens, and playgrounds.

Interior spaces are organized to stimulate spontaneous meetings between neighbors, whether it is by encouraging the use of the open stair or by treating the mailroom or laundry facilities as true communal functions. The two-story community room functions as the heart of the project, providing multi-use purpose for many occasions.

Farmdale Community Engagement
Farmdale Community Engagement

At MG2, designing for community means creating spaces that respond to the needs and voices of the people who will use them. It requires deep engagement focused on actively listening to resident priorities coupled with a commitment to accessibility, sustainability, and long-term functionality. The community engagement session with Farmdale residents was held in both Spanish and English and focused on capturing community priorities and encouraged residents to vote on various programmatic elements.

Spruce Street

Spruce Street is a mixed-use podium building in the heart of the Yesler Terrace neighborhood in Seattle, WA, at a crossroads of zoning and architecture of varying scales. The design steps the building down to integrate this large project into the surrounding context and meet the adjacent structures. To create a pedestrian-friendly scale, the building uses façade modulation, textural changes, and patterning. Programmatic surroundings are considered, with a double-height retail space along the main street and private terraces on the ground floor along the quieter residential streets. At the heart of the building is a large central landscaped courtyard accessible from the main lobby and several indoor amenities, which include a fitness center, TV/game room, pet wash and dog run, and a sky lounge with views of Mt. Rainier.

  • Project Details

  • Location Seattle, WA
  • Client TEC Development
  • Market Sectors ,
  • Size 360,000 SF; 241,000 SF residential; 2,300 SF retail; 389 units
  • Services

Development Is Lining Up Behind Seattle’s Light-Rail Push

Principal Jooyeol Oh, AIA, LEED AP, spoke with Joel Groover of ICSC C+CT about how MG2 projects, The Bowden and Mountlake Village, show the effects of Seattle’s future light rail expansion on the city.

Groover writes about The Bowden, “an MG2-designed mixed-use project that sits near the Overlake light-rail stop, which will connect to new stations at Marymoor Village and downtown Redmond. Construction will start this year, and the project will add 574 residential units and more than 5,000 square feet of ground-floor retail. As Oh sees it, growth of such residential projects should spur more demand for walkable retail in the neighborhood.”

Jooyeol Oh notes, “The city is envisioning that area to be a much-denser residential community, mixed with retail.”

Read more in ICSC C+CT

Simply Sustainable: How to Create a Green Home Office

MG2 Materials Manager Eleazar Juarez-Diaz, LEED Green Associate, spoke with Amber Katz of The Seattle Times on simple ways to design an eco-friendly home office.

“Using larger monitors, touch screens or tablets to review and edit documents can eliminate the need for printing,” he says. “If you must print, use an environmental and human health-friendly brand like the ones rated by The Good Shopping Guide and use FSC-certified printer paper. Additionally, be sure to recycle or reuse your printer cartridges, since most end up in landfills.”

Read more in The Seattle Times

ARCAT Detailed Podcast Episode: Mixed-use Adapted Reuse | 6 Corners Lofts

“This ambitious project showcases the principles of adaptive reuse. The building’s evolution from a retail giant to a 206-unit residential complex, with a ground floor Target store, highlights a commitment to sustainable design,” says Cherise Lakeside, FCSI, CDT, host of ARCAT’s podcast Detailed, in her interview with Principal Jooyeol Oh about 6 Corners Lofts.

Jooyeol Oh continues his description of the project, “The primary goal of the client and community was really preserving the character and history of the building…This presented both a limitation and an opportunity to reimagine the building into a residential mixed-use building, and we were really excited about it. With its incredible bones and unique potential, we wanted to create a mixed-use building that could be distinctive and appealing to the residents and neighbors. The process was more challenging, as opposed to a ground-up brand new build, but it made the process all the more rewarding.”

Listen to the full podcast on ARCAT’s website
Watch the extended interview ARCAT’s YouTube

With TCO issued, First Light begins selling its 459 condos

“James K.M. Cheng Architects designed the 48-story project, working with local shop MG2 as the Executive Architect. First Light topped out in the fall of 2023. Since then, it’s mostly been interior work, though a few workers were out on the balconies on Tuesday morning.”

Read more at The Daily Journal of Commerce

Felipe Romero named ICSC+CENTERBUILD Leaders Under 40 Class of 2024

MG2 Associate Principal Felipe Romero accepted his ICSC+CENTERBUILD Leaders Under 40 Class of 2024 award at Centerbuild this week.

With over a decade of experience, Felipe has developed thoughtful, community-centered environments. Recognizing the critical role retail plays in both the economy and local communities, he has dedicated his career to designing these vital spaces.

Read more at ICSC

More renovations for Tacoma Mall

 Simon Property Group announced this summer what it calls The Village, a two-building addition at its 85-acre Tacoma Mall. That’s now underway, with Deacon Construction and architect MG2 in charge.

Read more in Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce

More Americans are living in malls, as developers get creative to help ease the housing crisis

Recently featured in CNBC, Flatiron Crossing is undergoing a transformation into a thriving outdoor park experience. Located in Bloomfield, Colorado, the mixed-use complex will include residential, food and beverage, entertainment, and office space within a 9-acre nature park space.

Read more at CNBC

Tacoma Mall announces major renovations beginning in spring 2025

The owner of the Tacoma Mall has announced a multi-million dollar renovation plan for the main building, which is set to begin in spring of 2025. 

Renovations are expected to be complete in the winter. The mall will stay open during renovations. 

Read more in King 5

MG2 Joins Colliers Engineering & Design to Expand Services and Increase Footprint

L to R: Russ Hazzard, AIA, President, MG2; Kevin Haney, PE, President and CEO, Colliers Engineering & Design; Mitch Smith, AIA, LEED AP, CEO and Chairman, MG2. Download high-resolution image.

New partnership offers architecture, design, engineering, and more with locations across the U.S.

SEATTLE, WA—Dec. 3, 2024—Global architecture and design firm MG2 announced today that it has joined Colliers Engineering & Design, a division of the global commercial real estate and investment management firm Colliers. MG2 is ranked a top 20 Architecture Firm and among the top five in Retail Design. MG2’s more than 400 architects, designers, and staff operate across seven offices in the U.S. and China: Seattle, Portland, Irvine, Minneapolis, Washington, DC, New York, and Shanghai. Their award-winning team of strategists, creatives, and technical experts work together to solve problems and design solutions that bring their clients’ visions to life.

Colliers Engineering & Design, headquartered in Holmdel, New Jersey, is a privately held company with 75+ offices throughout the United States. Partnering with Colliers Engineering & Design allows MG2 to expand its geographic reach and add expertise in building systems and structural engineering, site development, civil engineering, and construction management.

“Joining a complementary professional practice with Collier’s Engineering & Design’s resources and expertise enables us take advantage of growth opportunities in the market immediately and maintain the pace of our strategic plan,” says MG2 Chief Executive Officer and Chairman Mitch Smith, AIA, LEED AP. “Our greatest strength lies in our people, our clients, and our commitment to helping them succeed. This strategic step with Colliers Engineering & Design offers opportunities for our people to do their best work.”

“We are thrilled to have MG2 join our team,” says Colliers Engineering & Design President and CEO Kevin L. Haney, PE. “Collier’s Engineering & Design invests in relationships to promote sustained growth and success, and this agreement will enable us to continue to drive market growth as a top-tier national commercial industry leader, provide clients with exceptional commercial design services, and accelerate communities nationwide.”

Current MG2 leaders will become senior partners within Colliers Engineering & Design, maintaining the company’s leadership structure and culture. MG2 will be rebranded at a future date.

About MG2

Guided by our vision to create transformative experiences that foster and elevate healthy communities, MG2 has been delivering award-winning projects and programs for over 50 years. We partner with some of the world’s most recognizable companies and brands to bring exceptional design solutions to life through full architectural, strategic planning, cost management, interior design, brand strategy, and program consulting services. Our offices in the U.S.—Seattle, Portland, New York, Washington D.C., Minneapolis, and Irvine—integrate building performance and social responsibility into every project. At MG2, our greatest strength lies in our people, our clients, and our commitment to helping them succeed. We are purpose-driven by nature, data-driven by design. www.mg2.com

About Colliers Engineering & Design

Colliers Engineering & Design is a trusted provider of multi-discipline engineering, design and consulting services to public and private sector clients. Headquartered in Holmdel, New Jersey, with a network of offices throughout the United States, we specialize in providing a comprehensive suite of E/A services including Civil/Site, Architecture, Transportation, Governmental, Survey/Geospatial, Infrastructure, Geotechnical/Environmental, Telecommunications, Utilities/Energy, and Project Management.

Our talented professionals utilize the most advanced technologies to deliver customized solutions for our clients. Colliers Engineering & Design is affiliated with Colliers (NASDAQ, TSX: CIGI) a leading diversified professional services and investment management company. Learn more at colliersengineering.com. Visit us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and X.

Century-Old Fairmont Olympic Hotel in Seattle is a Gem in Preservation

The Fairmont Olympic Hotel Seattle

The Ramones played there, dignitaries dined there, and locals came in for afternoon tea for 75 cents. The Fairmont Olympic Hotel in downtown Seattle celebrates 100 years in December 2024 with the $25 million renovation of its lobby, bar, restaurant, and meeting spaces under the vision of Spanish design studio Lázaro Rosa-Violán (LRV) with local architecture firm MG2, completed in 2021.

Read more at gb&d magazine

Designing Buildings With Conversion in Mind

MG2 Principal Jooyeol Oh spoke with Diana Mosher from the Commercial Property Executive about building conversions.

“When I think about flexible design, the word that comes to me is ‘resilience,'” said Jooyeol Oh in the piece. He continued, “Flexible design is a challenge, but it’s a challenge that we always think about.”

MG2’s 6 Corners Lofts project, a 1938 Sears building adapted into an innovative mixed-use community, is an example of that flexible design brought into practice. Original elements, like flared capital columns and terrazzo flooring, were preserved while the building was updated to bring modern amenities to residents.

Read more in Commercial Property Executive

MG2 Named #2 in Puget Sound Business Journal’s Largest Architecture Firms List

MG2 has been named the #2 firm in Puget Sound Business Journal’s list of the Largest Architecture Firms in the Seattle Area.

Read more in Puget Sound Business Journal

From Retail to Residential: The Transformation of a Chicago Sears Store

MG2 Principal and design lead of 6 Corners Lofts Jooyeol Oh spoke with Multi-Housing News Associate Editor Madalina Pojoga about the adaptive-reuse process at the Sears building and the impact 6 Corners Lofts will have on the city’s Portage Park area.

“The Six Corners Shopping District has a long history as a popular and successful neighborhood shopping and entertainment destination serving the community. Preserving the character of one of its most beloved landmarks was a crucial consideration for us.

“There were three main design elements we wanted to highlight: the vernacular architecture of the surrounding brick buildings, the juxtaposition of old and new, and a celebration of the Art Deco style.”

Read more in Multi-Housing News

Woods Restaurant Named Honorable Mention in VMSD’s Retail Renovation Competition

We’re excited to see Woods Restaurant named an honorable mention in VMSD’s Retail Renovation Competition.

Woods Restaurant on Mackinac Island has been a beloved destination for guests and visitors for many years. The restaurant recently partnered with MG2 to renovate and refresh its interiors while maintaining the classic experience visitors know and love.

Read more at VMSD

Energized Growth: Russ Hazzard

Hear from Russ Hazzard, President of MG2, in his Q&A with The Zweig Letter Correspondent, Liisa Andreassen.

“Hazzard first joined MG2 in 1993. He says that they’re always looking to grow their shareholder base and to bring younger contributors into the fold – people who want to grow the company and take over when the old guard retires.

“‘It will be exciting to watch as the next generation leads the firm and the industry into the future,’ he says.” Find the full interview in the link here:

Read more in The Zweig Letter

Room to Grow: Finding Space

MG2 Senior Interior Designer Natalie Hyde spoke with Amber Katz from The Seattle Times on finding extra space in your home.

“‘There are so many beautiful decorative screens in the market that can provide privacy and separation while feeling like a piece of furniture.’ A screen can be a great backdrop to other pieces of furniture, she adds.”

Read more in The Seattle Times

MG2 Listed in Building Design+Construction’s Top 200 Architecture Firms for 2024

MG2 ranked among the top 20 in Building Design+Construction Media’s recently released Top 200 Architecture Firms for 2024.

Read more in Building Design + Construction

Hotel of the Week: Seattle’s Restored Fairmont Olympic Hotel Celebrates 100th Anniversary

The Fairmont Olympic Hotel Seattle

 A recent refresh by architecture firm MG2 and Barcelona-based Lázaro Rosa-Violán brought this historic hotel back to its glory days

This year officially marks the 100th anniversary of the historic Fairmont Olympic Hotel, favorably situated on University Street in Seattle’s lively downtown area. Ask any local, and they’ll say that the 450-room property has been a mainstay in the city’s social scene throughout the years—and it was even added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

Read more at Galerie

What It Took to Convert an Old Chicago Sears into Modern Retail and Residential

Lead designer and MG2 principal Jooyeol Oh talked with C+CT contributing editor Joel Groover about 6 Corners Lofts, a transformed historic Chicago Sears building that is now a mixed-use development.

MG2’s Community Environments team carefully preserved the building’s art deco character while introducing contemporary elements like floor-to-ceiling windows and a new top floor with luxury amenities.

“We punched floor-to-ceiling windows and added balconies and terraces. This allowed us to modernize the old Sears retail store and warehouse to a residential use while preserving its art deco character. To expand the number of residential units, we added a whole new 31-unit wing that complements the look and feel of its counterpart.”

Read more at ICSC

Architecture Firms See Billings Change – MG2 Ranked #18 in Architectural Firms list for 2024

So excited to see that The Orange County Business Journal has ranked MG2 #18 in its Architectural Firms list for 2024.

“The firm has seen an uptick in retail, industrial, and affordable housing markets, according to chief executive officer Mitch Smith. ‘The growth in all three of these sectors has had a substantial impact on architectural billings in our Irvine office, reflecting the adaptability and agility of our team,’ Smith said.”

Read more on The Orange County Business Journal

The Orange County Business Journal ranked MG2 #18 in Architectural Firms list for 2024

So excited to see that The Orange County Business Journal has ranked MG2 in the top 20 of its Architectural Firms list for 2024.

Read more on The Orange County Business Journal