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.
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.
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.”
MG2 ranked among the top 20 in Building Design+Construction Media’s recently released Top 200 Architecture Firms for 2024.
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.”
After serving 80 years as a retail space, 6 Corners Lofts is revitalizing the Chicago area as an adaptive reuse, mixed-use development.
Mountlake Village is a mixed-use development that meets the needs of a diverse, active, and growing population. The development includes residential and retail space to invite the community in. Amenities include a coworking space, a ground-floor plaza, resident lounges, a gym, a yoga studio, a dog grooming facility, a dog run, and a rooftop terrace.
Located within the master planned Barkley Village development, The Manning is a new 171-unit residential complex. The building includes a gym amenity space and a large commercial space on the ground floor. Building on the master plan’s goals for a true urban village, the development seeks to draw in the community and add vibrancy to the area. Residents have direct access to dining, shopping, and entertainment options from a farmer’s market to a movie theater.
Beltline is a vibrant neighborhood comprised of rich history, modern luxury, and a spirited community with a personality all its own. The development holistically reflects and celebrates the historical character of the district while weaving in modern sophistication. Beltline Block includes a multi-phase mix of residential and commercial uses including four towers, each delivered in a separate phase.
This eight-story podium apartment building is located in the heart of Redmond’s Overlake neighborhood and is within walking distance of the new light rail station. The design team’s goal was to add to the richness of the community while positively impacting the nearby businesses and contribute to the area’s vibrant cultural diversity. The design emphasizes sustainability, community impact, and efficient design.
The Landing at Paso Robles is a unique location unifying various activities. From wineries and breweries to warehouse maker spaces, a blurred indoor-outdoor environment leverages the destination’s perfect climate to foster connections in a casual setting.
With elements influenced by the adjacent airport in wine country, Paso Robles is designed to offer a unique motif that fuses modern aesthetics with a rich local legacy. These themes can be found throughout the different building types, from grand sliding barn doors that reveal flattering glass walls to sweeping laminated timber beams that soar overhead.
A closer look at the site reveals the presence of existing oak trees, adding a natural charm and contributing to the spatial qualities with dappled light. To further enhance the story, a farm-to-table grape-growing demonstration garden was included to embrace the agricultural essence of the region.
The Landing at Paso Robles will boast diverse offerings, including resort hotels for a luxurious stay, a vibrant market hall, well-equipped office spaces, and retail establishments. Each detail weaves together seamlessly to create an enticing and memorable destination.
Located in Seattle’s premier neighborhood of Capitol Hill, 1661 Olive Way promises to elevate the community’s unique character. The neighborhood’s restaurants, bars, small businesses, and civic history create a vibrant pedestrian experience that this new mixed-use development will enhance. The resulting mixed-use residential building will comprise retail on the ground floor, 170 residential units above, and amenity areas, including exercise, resident lounge, and rooftop.
First Light综合体项目位于西雅图市中心，建筑共47层，当前还在开发阶段。项目业态涵盖临街零售，包括3间餐厅和1个咖啡馆；大楼顶部设有6层办公空间，另有38层为住宅公寓。
MG2与温哥华设计师James KM Cheng合作，共同实现了First Light的项目愿景，同时又考虑了当地上班族和城市居民的经济承受能力。该项目还设计有一个封闭的温室式屋顶花园，可尽享俯瞰全景，此外，还配备有游泳池和休息区。2楼至7楼的外墙还有出自当地艺术家James Holden手笔的大型艺术装置。建成后，此座高层建筑将为所在城市不断发展城区中心廊道增添又一道美丽风景，同时提升功能性。
100 & Main is a collection of ten premier residential units combining classic luxury with modern architecture. Designed as a “Swiss watch built on a postage stamp,” the building, which balances making a statement with sitting lightly on a busy pedestrian-friendly corner, proved deceptively challenging. By artfully addressing a steep slope and condensed lot size with architectural detailing, 100 & Main is a unique treasure in Old Bellevue.
100 & Main was honored with NAIOP’s Night of the Stars Multi-Family Residential Development of the Year Award.
In an effort to revitalize a 1938 Sears building and reinvigorate a historic Chicago shopping district, Novak Development has partnered with MG2 as their design architect to bring to life an innovative mixed-use project complete with 200 residential units, over 50,000 s/f of retail, and 300 parking spaces.
MG2’s cross-market expertise spanning multi-family and mixed-use built environments grants our team the ability to create a holistic, inviting community experience. Simultaneously, our decades-long relationships with some of the world’s top retail brands and intimate knowledge of their programs and operations allow us to engage our portfolio of partners, bringing Target in on the ground floor—literally and figuratively— to create a truly unique experience for the residents of Chicago.
6 Corners Lofts mixed-use development provides the opportunity to create an architectural transformation that connects past and present and sets the tone for the future of the neighborhood.
“Six Corners was once the second-busiest shopping center aside from downtown area,” says Richard Fahy in a recent article by Block Club Chicago. He is a representative for Operating Engineers Local 150 and a longtime Northwest Side resident, “This site has the potential in playing a vital role in transforming our community and give our local economy a boost that is long overdue.”
The existing 1932 building serves as a historic backbone and foundation from which we can build a new and meaningful story for the neighborhood, residents, and visitors. The revitalization of 6 Corners Lofts is an opportunity to design a destination-worthy experience for the area. Our design—an iconic juxtaposition of Art Deco with cutting-edge technology—honors the historic nature of the site while simultaneously infusing new energy and life to the community it serves.
Seeking to build density and add value to a property whose neighborhood was maturing around it, Crossroads in Bellevue, WA partnered with MG2 to evolve the urban-based shopping center into a sustainability-minded, multi-family community that leverages and seamlessly melds with nearby amenities.
Years of pedestrian studies, wayfinding strategy, and sophisticated design went into Crossroads’ U-shaped building and its positioning, ensuring the footprint lined up perfectly with surrounding environments and natural spaces. An approach that helps bolster multimodal exploration, walkability, and access to public transit, the campus seamlessly connects the public and private within its community.
Naturally, landscaping plays a significant role as well. Every edge of the complex is considered an urban trail, reinforcing the pedestrian-centric nature of the design. By converting an asphalt parking lot into green space, the team created an additional opportunity for the sustainable filtering of stormwater by implementing bioswales and rain gardens throughout. The effort resulted in 20% more community green space.
For its interiors, a thematic approach was taken to the design, embracing and enhancing the community and celebrating the diversity it fosters. Many units are two bedrooms, perfect for multi-generational families who work in the area. MG2 is working closely with the project’s interiors team to create a seamless, hybrid integration between internal and external experiences. With a color and design scheme that radiates the Pacific Northwest, there are endless opportunities for entertainment, including an activated public space and amenity-rich roof deck.
Designed as a community, not a commodity, Crossroads design incorporates a number of culturally-rich and thoughtful food options, as well as boutique retail space for brands to connect with residents and visitors alike in a highly socialized setting. The evolution of this predominantly retail environment into a sustainable, cultured, pedestrian paradise is slated for completion in 2024.
神奇的布伦特伍德（Brentwood）位于温哥华的轻轨沿线，是一个面向交通的开发项目，涵盖零售，住宅和娱乐。 SHAPE是加拿大一家知名的开发商，与MG2合作，帮助完善了零售设计策略，并探索了该物业的未来设计阶段。
MG2寻求为来布伦特伍德（Brentwood）的人们创造一个独特而又高尚的体验，它采用了热情好客的零售设计理念。这种体验始于抵达之时，伴随着一系列不断扩大的客流吸引了购物者，让人联想起门廊式的感觉。
团队在整个设计概念中精心策划了零售经验，强调围绕舒适性，易用性和永恒美学的空间。
不断发展的大都市的动态体现
汕头苏宁广场是一个充满活力的旗舰店，它激活了中国广东省的城市港口城市。该开发项目的高端零售中心以国内外知名品牌为特色，其外部环绕式LED屏幕和透明玻璃中庭吸引了人们的注意。
汕头苏宁广场位于城市商业区，拥有两座令人向往的A级办公大楼。该开发项目的时尚，简约设计与郁郁葱葱的屋顶花园和开放的中央法院并置，游客可以在此找到喘息的机会或参加社区聚会。目的地，信标和避风港都融入了一种集中式体验。
当西尔斯关门时，华盛顿广场购物中心（西北太平洋地区最大的购物中心）知道是时候采用创新方法了。该购物中心与MG2合作，寻求一种解决方案，以增加消费者流量，恢复主播位置并通过新鲜的零售，餐厅和娱乐场所吸引他们的客户群。难题的最后一部分将是酒店，以及围绕一个充满活力的公园的新建的住宅单元，从而完善社区并将其绑定在一起。
我们的团队立即接受了已经实施的计划，在保持项目进展的同时，创造了一个新颖的故事，使之成为我们自己的故事。 MG2的设计师采用了一种情境方法，在太平洋西北部散发着零星天气的情况下玩耍，我们自然回应了多层服装。最终的设计使用了美化环境，照明和新建的空间来诠释我们的建筑故事，为曾经的锚点带来新的活力。
通过从传统的购物中心到更加有机的开放空间的分层过渡，我们为购物中心产生了新的进入顺序。
现场酒店经过倾斜设计，可从道路上获得更多视野，同时还可以暴露自然环境。体验随着珠宝盒餐厅的建造，顾客的问候和竞购者的兴高采烈。
为客户提供无与伦比的全方位服务的建筑设计解决方案，MG2继续与华盛顿广场合作，进入建造阶段的最后阶段，一些高端娱乐，餐饮和零售品牌已经对这家充满活力的购物中心表示了兴趣。
Close to the 405 corridors and the heart of downtown Kirkland sits the Rose Hill Shopping Center: a 40-year-old retail center and mall area growing more outdated by the day. The seven-acre site, which lacks residential or green spaces, was ready for a transformation, one that would help holistically foster a healthy, walkable community and support the growing tech company campuses nearby.
Madison Development Group partnered with MG2 to master plan, design, and develop the new Rose Hill: an innovative multi-block, mixed-use community campus project. Bringing to life seven unique buildings connected by a walkable, pedestrian-centric courtyard experience, Rose Hill will play host to over 830 residential units, 84,200 sq/ft of retail and grocery space, and 1,049 parking stalls, creating a memorable destination for the entire city of Kirkland and beyond.
One of the largest multi-family residence projects in the Seattle area, MG2 designers were tasked with establishing a livable community that felt like it’d always belonged there. The topography’s steep grading—a challenge our team has worked with before—was cleverly used to the site design’s favor, creating multiple entry points to the tiered complex. The central pedestrian plaza, a lush, tree-scaped, walkable courtyard bordered by active retail, is publicly accessible via a grand terraced staircase from 85th Street. The parking structure’s first floor features open-air, landscaped elements which blend seamlessly with the rest of the complex.
Moving through the campus, which is designed to encourage interaction, exploration, and curiosity, residents and visitors can easily see the variety of amenities and landmarks the property offers. Amenities are purposefully dispersed across several buildings, each of which is crafted to radiate their own personality inside and out while still speaking the same design language. The contextual significance of Rose Hill helps foster a sense of place; as one of the most pedestrian, walkability-focused projects in the neighborhood, this top-of-mind awareness of personable facilities and amenities fosters familiarity as well as continued inquisitiveness.
MG2’s unique cross-market expertise, integrated services packages, and long-standing relationships with retailers like PCC, Costco, and Target ensured that our team understood the intricate nuances of how a diverse, thriving, healthy community like Rose Hill would need to be designed for future success. Partnering closely with the client on timelines, the project has been broken down into a three-phased approach, ensuring that no detail is overlooked as we add 783 new multi-family homes and 77,000 SF of retail space to the community.
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