SMPS Seattle’s annual Reign Awards gala recognizes excellence in marketing communications and outstanding achievements of top marketing professionals.
MG2 won Best Event for “Costco’s 40th Anniversary Event & Exhibit”.
We’re honored to be included in the Puget Sound Business Journal’s annual list of Corporate Philanthropists.
Recognizing the importance of preserving the hotel’s rich heritage while updating its timeless charm, Fairmont Olympic Hotel leaders embarked on a restoration project. To achieve their goal, the hotel’s representatives needed a team that could blend modern elegance with classic sophistication while paying attention to every intricate detail in preserving the property’s legacy. Renovating this historic gem wasn’t just an enormous hospitality project, it was an honor and a privilege for the team at MG2, a local architect with a dedicated interest in community and culture.
Ranked by 2022 metro-area architectural billings.
Companies from Washington and beyond supported the state’s charities throughout 2022 as the economy cooled, inflation rose and as the long tail of Covid-19 lingered in our lives. The Business Journal’s lists of corporate philanthropists rank 75 of those companies for their contributions. The Business Journal will reveal the rankings of the 2023 Corporate Philanthropists rankings at the Corporate Citizenship event May 18 at the Sheraton Grand Seattle.
Coverings, the premier international tile and stone exhibition and conference in North America, has announced the annual Rock Star Award winners in advance of Coverings 2023 and we’re excited to see Kenya Jones-Lowell, Interior Designer at MG2 named a winner.
“Retailers need to carefully consider co-tenants, traffic counts, proximity of amenities, ease of access and real estate costs,” MJ Munsell told Chain Store Age. “It’s no longer a given that going into an inline mall location is the best strategy.”
We’re excited to be included in ENR’s 2023 Top 500 Design Firms Preview.
The look. The feel. The presence. Nothing stands out more in a commercial project than the
retail, restaurant, hospitality, healthcare (and other) sectors, check out our annual listing.
For decades, we’ve been passionate about supporting the development of future design leaders and fostering creative ideas that will influence the communities and spaces in which we live, play, and work. With unique perspectives and imaginative concepts, students have the potential to shape the future of the built environment and bring a breath of fresh air to the industry. That’s why we’re thrilled to announce that our Summer 2024 Internship Program is now open for applications.
MG2 has always placed distinctive value on high-impact career growth, continuous learning, and the influence those have on cultivating an exceptional company culture. Our Internship Program provides students with a hands-on experience in the field, allowing them to develop their skills and gain a comprehensive understanding of what it’s like to work in architecture and design. With four start dates to choose from, interns will have the flexibility to choose a program that works best for them and their university schedule.
Ready for real, hands-on experience? Not only will our students assist with document preparation, data collection, research, and other project tasks that ensure successful results, but they’ll also have access to dynamic social and learning events, mentorship, as well as our infamous Annual Student Intern Design Competition. Designed to give interns a comprehensive understanding of the industry, we’re excited to provide applicants with the opportunity to be a part of our dynamic and collaborative team and contribute to shaping the future of design.
We’re looking for passionate learners who are currently pursuing a Bachelor’s or Master of Architecture or a related degree and have proficiency in AutoCAD, Revit, MS Office, and Adobe Creative Suite. Applicants should also embrace and exude MG2’s core practice values of an Integrated Approach, Design Excellence, Social Responsibility, Leadership, and Results.
This year MG2 is offering internship opportunities in each of our United States offices, with focuses that span our Community Environments, Consumer Experiences, and Client Programs markets. With a variety of opportunities available, students will be able to experience projects, sessions, workshops, and experiential collaboration that aligns with future career goals.
Our employees are the heart of our firm, and as part of our team for the summer, students will have access to a variety of programs and perks that aim to make their experience with us truly unforgettable. From our commitment to sustainability to our dedication to equity, diversity, and inclusion, our interns will find a supportive and inclusive community at MG2.
To keep our culture strong and bring everyone together, we host bi-weekly all-office meals, monthly recognition events, happy hours, summer activities, and an end-of-year holiday party to commemorate our successes. No accomplishment is too small to celebrate, and we’re passionate about making every moment count.
To ensure our built environments are a true reflection of the communities we serve, diversity is a fundamental ingredient in MG2’s recipe for creating not only exceptional projects but an inclusive and equitable work environment. We’re actively seeking out talented individuals from diverse backgrounds who bring a wealth of unique perspectives and ideas to the table.
Our differences make us stronger and are integral in designing and building experiences and spaces that cater to everyone. We proudly champion inclusion in all its forms and strive to elevate every voice in order to create truly equitable experiences and spaces.
In our never-ending quest to cultivate the next generation of design professionals, we’re excited to welcome students who share our values, vision, and passion to join our team this summer. Early applications are due April 5, 2024. Let’s start your journey in architecture together.
As with the two before it, 2022 was a year of unpredictable change, evolution, and growth for our company, industry, and planet. MG2 is thrilled to take this moment in time to celebrate the devotion, perseverance, and enthusiasm that saw us through it all with the promotion of 102 highly outstanding staff across our global offices throughout the year.
As we dive into the waters of 2023—an adventure into both boundless prospects and undiscovered possibilities—we’re humbled and honored to have such incredible talent leading the way.
Amongst our leadership, it’s a pleasure to introduce our new Chief Financial Officer—Wendy Unzelman—and welcome three new Principals—Amy Hart, Mitch Pride, and Roy Hague—as well as three new Associate Principals—Nathan Menard, Geir Mjelde, and Javier Buscaglia-Pesquera—to our ranks.
But of course, our leaders are just one patch on the diverse quilt that is MG2. It’s with absolute pleasure that we celebrate the career advancement of dozens of dedicated staff from every department, market, and level. There are no small responsibilities here; we would not be the company we are today without the extraordinary ability and tenacity of all of our colleagues. We are fortunate to have outstanding people defining and delivering a limitless future for MG2 and our customers, putting your best into all you do, and making our firm such a fantastic place to work. Congratulations to all!
Amenities designed around pleasure can double as workspaces as long as they provide a flat surface, electrical outlets, internet access and a comfortable place to sit. Natalie Hyde, senior interior designer at Seattle-based design firm MG2, has stopped putting dedicated office space in common areas altogether in favor of amenities with flexible work-from-home applications.
For decades, MG2 has been deeply committed to fostering and growing authentic connections with the societies we live in, and design for. Proudly driven by and shaped by the dedicated employees of our firm, each philanthropic undertaking is a direct representation of the social issues, community challenges, and personal passions held as high priorities by individuals and teams throughout our practice. This personalized approach doesn’t just set us apart from others in our industry: it fundamentally defines who we are and what we stand for as a company.
2022 was truly a remarkable year for MG2. It was a year that tested our agility, perseverance, and character, with exemplary results documented not just through our projects and partnerships, but across the impact we’ve made together in—and on—our communities.
It was a year that empowered our firm to double down on commitments to institutions like Howard University, the University of Oregon, the University of Washington, Washington State University, Lake Washington Tech, and Florida A&M University—with whom we’ve established vocational scholarships to help foster career paths in design for those in underrepresented communities—and forge new relationships with organizations like Seattle-based Fred Hutch, whose strides in cancer research are transforming lives around the globe.
It was a year that finally allowed our staff to reengage in many of the physical initiatives, activities, and events that have always invigorated us to our core. From Day of Giving volunteer missions organized by teams across the globe, to group builds for BLOCK Project and NAIOP Community Enhancement Projects, to celebrating our 20th Swing for the Cure golf tournament in person with our partners once again—the emotion? Palpable. The energy? Visceral.
But perhaps most importantly, 2022 was a year that encouraged us to reenvision and recraft our roadmap for the future of the MG2 Foundation. Armed with deeper intention and meaning behind what we invest in (and why), we look forward to 2023 where we’ll seek to elevate the representation of the Foundation in underwriting all of our community engagements, investments, and initiatives, resulting in even greater impact than ever before.
This is where you, our community, come in. MG2 Foundation initiatives represent an investment not only in what our company stands for but also in our core identity.
To truly succeed, we need employees at all levels to bring their passions, energy, and ideas to the forefront. We need managers and leaders to help us educate teams about MG2’s impact efforts and to set a positive example by engaging with those with whom you resonate the most. And we need our friends, family, and partners to continue to bring their passions and support to the table. We would not succeed without you.
But most of all, we need everyone to lean in and take advantage of the virtually limitless opportunities at hand. With each new year, it’s our honor and pleasure to grant each of our employees the chance to support the organizations and causes they’re passionate about. To make a genuine difference in our communities, industry, and future. All you have to do is rise to the challenge.
Here’s to taking our impact even further together, in 2023 and beyond.
Yours in service and gratitude, Mitch Smith, CEO, MG2
Learn more about the mark MG2 has made on our communities in our inaugural MG2 Community Impact Report, or by reaching out to our team.
United Health Centers—or UHC—is driven by its commitment to the lifetime wellness of its communities. They provide accessible, comprehensive, quality health care to everyone with compassion and respect, regardless of ability to pay.
As the organization rapidly expands its services across California’s San Joaquin Valley, they’ve collaborated with designers at MG2 to repurpose and transform existing structures into exceptional medical facilities. The resulting spaces provide an elevated user experience by combining contemporary hospitality, residential comforts, and modern medicine in casual, comfortable, and open environments.
Adaptive reuse for healthcare environments
The adaptive reuse of properties into high-performing medical centers requires more than just basic architectural design. In addition to a deep understanding of structural nuances and how to work with existing components to transform a space, specific sets of expertise are required to adhere to state and national medical office codes and regulations.
The team began with intensive programming sessions—key in the concepting of any medical buildings—to unearth fundamental health and comfort considerations, allowing them to optimize the facilities’ user experiences for both patients and staff.
At the Clovis-Shaw Health Center—formerly housing a furniture store, Hollywood Video, and dojo—designers salvaged the building’s shell, reskinning and structurally retrofitting glass windows with the help of strongbacks to allow natural light to flow. Working closely with the city on the exterior, the team removed dated stucco, repainted, and refinished the facade with sun-resistant faux wood and a modern canopy, creating a welcoming atmosphere that begins when one enters the parking lot.
Previously a Sears automotive store, the Hanford Health Center location necessitated the removal of several oil pumps from the site, refilling and reconditioning the foundation to accommodate extensive structural edits, and shoring up. Auto garage doors were also removed and replaced with expansive glass windows that opened up interiors to natural beauty beyond.
Now a modern dental facility, the healthcare architectural design program was compact and complex, requiring the retrofit of fifteen medical stations and its unique plumbing system inside. MG2’s optimized design enabled the desired number of patient alcoves—complete with panoramic views of greenery to help lower patient stress—and a glass-bound reception area with columns buried into the window structure to carry the weight of the modern wall additions.
Designing a COVID-Era Medical Waiting Room
With the goal of elevating a unique end product that steered away from a cookie-cutter feel, designers leveraged focal points of safety, control, and family to produce open, welcoming, and modern environments that embody natural daylight and incorporate hospitality elements throughout.
With COVID still very much a reality, medical facility patients—whether consciously or subconsciously—will gravitate toward spacing themselves out from one another. With this in mind, designers worked to ultimately optimize the waiting room’s layout, configuring the lobby’s flow into unique pockets and pods instead of one large open-format staging area. These zones, designed to take into account individual comfort levels, enable each guest to feel safe while allowing nurses to see everyone seated in the room.
Designing for Medical Employee Health and Wellness
Just as important as patient health, safety, and comfort are that of doctors, nurses, and facilities staff. Employee satisfaction in a time of burnout and record resignations was a primary consideration in these medical office developments. As such, each back-of-house environment is designed and finished with the same high-end materials, finishes, and fixtures as the front-of-house.
Further, outdoor break spaces at facilities were strategically implemented to give healthcare workers room to breathe, a break from their PPE gear, and access to greenery and fresh air during their shifts.
Weaving Sustainability into Healthcare Environments
Above-and-beyond sustainability standards and biophilic elements have been implemented throughout the design and construction of United Health Center’s adaptive reuse medical centers for today’s patients and future generations alike.
Expertise in designing for California’s OSHPD #3 medical code, as well as CalGreen permitting, enabled MG2’s design team to adopt and abide by these clinical and state-wide standards quickly and efficiently. Energy conservation is furthered through solar panel-ready roofs, a robust, eco-friendly lighting system, and the inherent nature of adaptive reuse in favor of new construction, all of which add up to saving UHC energy and money.
Lots of factors go into creating a good event space. Here are four tips from designers about how to create a memorable venue for events, whether indoors or out.
Soaring above the intersection of Seattle’s Downtown and First Hill neighborhoods stands Ovation: a first-of-its-kind luxury apartment community offering elevated amenities and an artfully-infused aesthetic to residents and guests alike.
The 770,000-square-foot project includes two 32-story residential towers with 565 total residential units. It contains eight levels of underground parking for 387 vehicles, as well as 8,400 square feet of retail, office, and restaurant space. Further deepening its roots within the district, Ovation’s ample outdoor space weaves directly into that of Seattle’s Town Hall, creating a unified park experience for inhabitants, the public, and patrons of the municipal venue.
The complex’s dual towers each reflect a unique personality embodying various facets of the location and its history. A broad scope of amenities caters to residents’ urban and active lifestyles: rooftop terrace with pool, hot tub, fireplace lounge, coworking spaces with private workrooms, an expansive gym, two covered pet lounges with a grooming center, a movie theater, and more. Throughout these public areas, custom artwork packages showcase the talents of local artists.
The curation of Ovation’s residential unit finishes and amenity spaces—a joint effort between numerous firms—was translated, documented, and seamlessly implemented by interior design experts at MG2.
Shepherding the efforts from construction documentation through completion, the team coordinated the logistics of several considerations, assured constructability, and saw the original design story through to fruition.
In several instances, real-time problem solving was applied to interpret, iterate, or evolve specific designs due to undocumented design intent, supply chain logistics, or discontinued elements. ADA regulations for lobby area stadium seating were redesigned from scratch. Custom millwork, initially incorrectly spec’d, was reimagined and rectified. Fixtures and finishes no longer available or disrupted delivery timelines were expertly reselected, assuring timely installation.
Blending in-depth understandings of functionality, execution, and elevated, detail-oriented user journey, MG2 used a light yet consistent touch throughout the interior design of Ovation, seeing it through to completion and a successful, on-time, and on-budget debut to the Seattle community.
Ovation was recently named as a finalist in NAIOP’s 2022 Night of the Stars for “High-Rise Residential Development of the Year”.
The winners have been announced for the 42nd Gold Key Awards for Excellence in Hospitality Design, the industry’s oldest awards program for hospitality interiors, sponsored by Boutique Design magazine. The 2022 Gold Key judges selected these standout projects from a competitive field of submissions from more than 100 design firms around the world.
Reinventing enclosed shopping malls is a bit of an art, handled on a site-by-site calculation with the goal of reinvigorating each community.
“Changing guest and owner demands mean new normals in hotel construction. Here are some tips for what hoteliers should keep in mind when starting a construction project, whether it’s a new-build, an expansion or a gut renovation.”
To create Healthy Communities, MG2 has expanded on the traditional live-work-play model, adding the more intangibles of “nourish,” “learn” and “move.” The plans for Crossroads, in Bellevue, is one example. At Crossroads, we intentionally knit residential, retail, and green space into the fabric of the community and improved connections to transit and community hubs for a pedestrian experience throughout and beyond the property.
“Seattle-based architecture and design firm MG2 has promoted Shannon Suess, Terry Odle, Mai-Lee Lam, and Mat Yeung to the role of principal.”
It’s no secret that with each passing year, cities in the United States become more and more populated. By July 1st, 2022, usapopulation.org estimates that New York City will reach 8.865 million residents. With this rise in density comes numerous development challenges. Among them: abundant, accessible multi-family housing for individuals and families, and last-mile distribution solutions for companies servicing urban neighborhoods and their surrounding areas.
When it comes to the development of both multi-family housing and commercial properties like warehouses or distribution centers, particularly in metropolitan environments, each presents its own series of challenges and hurdles. Most prevalently, however, is space. As cities continue to grow, the harder it’s becoming for developers to find real estate for either venture, and the more expensive it’s becoming to bring these theoretically single-use structures to life.
But what if, in cities like New York, we could solve both challenges at once? What if we could optimize footprints vertically to—proverbially—kill two birds with one stone? Is it feasible to design and build a solution that houses both residential tenants and the complex operations of a last-mile distribution center, one that allows them to co-exist in the same building in harmony, without the two worlds interfering with or disturbing one another?
Overseas, these concepts are already becoming a reality. Well-versed in the intricacies of both markets, designers in MG2’s Shanghai office have been working on hybrid-use, single footprint solutions in Korea’s rapidly growing cities for years. From Gocheok, to Pyeongtaek, to Jichuk, warehouse facilities in Asia have been designed to co-exist in harmony with both residential and office towers that rise above. With these complex projects, however, comes a series of considerations that span design, operations, logistics, local government regulations, and perhaps most intricately, structural challenges.
So what do those considerations look like for us in urban sprawls like the Tri-State area, and more importantly, is it possible to overcome them and create our own single-footprint solutions for multi-family housing and last-mile distribution?
As with all good projects, acceptance and approval from all concerned parties are critical to the success of any real estate venture. For a mixed-use urban building that houses both multi-family residences and a last-mile distribution center or warehouse space, stakeholders can include city governments, jurisdictions, developers, commercial tenants, and representatives of the local community.
Pushback from neighborhood residents and city entities over concerns of traffic, noise, and potentially a loss of tax dollars are becoming more prevalent, while simultaneously viewing the potential plus of an “increase in jobs” as perhaps not the “right kind” of local jobs for their district.
Developers or commercial tenants who don’t want to have to worry about the complexities that arise from sensitivities, restrictions, or even potential violations that might occur from being in such close proximity to residential inhabitants may see these cons outweighing the pros, and want to avoid the venture altogether.
It sounds like an uphill battle to be sure, but the secret to success with this concern is a multi-faceted understanding of each stakeholder’s individual concerns, objectives, goals, and desires, as well as the design and logistics intricacies of each market. With this expertise leading the way, each piece of the puzzle is heard, understood, addressed, and solved for in the final product.
While human-centered conversations with those involved in and affected by this unique type of development are a necessary first step, investments in sustainability can also play a role in helping sway the tides of stakeholder buy-in. With many developers today pursuing LEED certification for all of their projects, the additional integration of EV capabilities into commercial facilities, as well as other sustainable initiatives that benefit cities, companies, and communities alike, can play a huge role in shifting the viewpoints of those involved.
With two building systems living on the same footprint, there are dozens of operations and logistics factors that need to be taken into account for both, particularly in an urban environment. Last-mile distribution facilities can often operate around the clock, and the noise that stems from the warehouse itself, as well as the receiving bays of a 24-hour operation, has the potential to be a major disruptor to the lives of those above.
Harmonization of the vertical transportation and traffic flow of delivery trucks and facility employees with residents’ vehicles in what might be a complex, multi-tiered parking system is paramount. Additional considerations for both warehouse staff and residential tenants include safety, security, privacy, lobby areas, access to street frontage, and more.
For these two ventures to co-exist and operate in harmony within the same building, intimate expertise is required in not only the daily logistics and flow of commercial facilities and multi-family housing, but also in the built asset management required for the optimization of operational upkeep for each typology, and where these two programs will differ and overlap.
Furthering the operational hurdles that accompany this new mixed-use typology are, of course, the configuration challenges behind designing and constructing two different building systems into one structure.
In addition to considerations like the optimization of the transfer slab for the grids of commercial, parking, and residential, the mix of uses and separations as well as strict regulations from the city for each typology need to be clarified and implemented. For example, the ordinances for elements such as emergency evacuation routes, fire separations, and sprinkler systems for multi-family housing differ from those in commercial facilities, but with each of these typologies living on the same footprint, mandates for both need to be factored in the structure’s design.
While tackling mixed-use projects like these in Korea, designers have noted that, with residential above, the column spacing and layout of the last-mile delivery warehouse floor are affected. This, in turn, affects components such as the size and shape of these columns, the location and height of industrial steel racks, and the space required for forklift and personnel maneuverability and traffic optimization.
As urban areas become denser, demand for housing and last-mile delivery solutions will continue to rise. These examples are just a handful of the dozens if not hundreds of challenges that require experienced consideration to design and build successful mixed-use solutions that house both multi-family residential and commercial last-mile warehousing facilities within the same footprint.
By employing cross-market expertise and designing solutions for both typologies in tandem, developers have the opportunity to bring to life these new, highly desirable mixed-use building types in urban settings. Making this concept a reality in a metropolis like New York or its surrounding areas is not only possible, but practical for the future of companies, cities, and urban communities alike.
Brought in to renovate the historic Fairmont Olympic Hotel in Seattle, the contractors working with MG2 pulled up the carpeting on the main staircase and landings and were surprised to discover the hotel’s original terrazzo floors that had been hand-laid by artisans in 1924. “Replacement carpeting had already been ordered, but the unearthed terrazzo floors were too beautiful to cover up,” relates Shannon Suess, principal, MG2, Seattle. So instead, MG2 reached out to North American Terrazzo as they had experience with historic terrazzo restorations in the Pacific Northwest.
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