Two Houston-based architecture firms, Architects-Plus and Three Square Design Group, will merge to launch Method Architecture this year.
The new studio will be situated in a 10,000-sf second floor of an industrial building in the EaDo neighborhood, east of downtown Houston. Method will move into the building in June, and it will design the exterior renovations for the entire building, which also includes retail and food businesses.
Architects-Plus and Three Square completed 700 total projects between them last year. Architects-Plus has designed auto dealerships, offices, financial institutions, and medical centers, while Three Square’s portfolio contains corporate interiors, industrial centers, and special projects, like breweries. Each have worked on retail spaces and assisted living centers.
Method will have a staff of 40 and it will take on the same range of projects that Architects-Plus and Three Square did.
Method is led by four partners: Keith Holley and Eric Hudson, Principals and Co-owners of Architects-Plus; Jake Donaldson, Founder and Principal of Three Square; and Vanessa Ortega, Director of Projects at Three Square.
Left to right: Donaldson, Ortega, Holley, and Hudson.
The partners have a shared history. First they were classmates at Texas A&M and the University of Houston, then they worked at Architects-Plus before Donaldson opened Three Square in 2008 (Holley and Hudson became owners of Architects-Plus in 2013).
“We’re thrilled about what lies ahead with Method, as we tap the resources that both firms bring to the table,” the Partners said in a statement. “Our combined portfolio means that we have collective expertise on a vast array of project types. After considerable planning, we’re confident that we can build upon this expanded reach, while still providing the same quality, personal attention and culture that clients and employees appreciate.”
(Click to enlarge photos)
Parkview Commerce Center is a 828,162-sf three-building multi-tenant speculative industrial park in Flower Mound, Texas. It was designed by Architects-Plus.
The first commercial facility of its kind in the U.S., the 44,000-sf Maersk Training Center is a training facility in Houston designed by Architects-Plus.
The popular Karbach Brewing Company is a 22,040-sf brewery with a tap house, full kitchen, and event spaces. Three Square Design Group was the architect.
Related Stories
| Nov 2, 2010
Energy Analysis No Longer a Luxury
Back in the halcyon days of 2006, energy analysis of building design and performance was a luxury. Sure, many forward-thinking AEC firms ran their designs through services such as Autodesk’s Green Building Studio and IES’s Virtual Environment, and some facility managers used Honeywell’s Energy Manager and other monitoring software. Today, however, knowing exactly how much energy your building will produce and use is survival of the fittest as energy costs and green design requirements demand precision.
| Nov 2, 2010
Yudelson: ‘If It Doesn’t Perform, It Can’t Be Green’
Jerry Yudelson, prolific author and veteran green building expert, challenges Building Teams to think big when it comes to controlling energy use and reducing carbon emissions in buildings.
| Nov 2, 2010
Historic changes to commercial building energy codes drive energy efficiency, emissions reductions
Revisions to the commercial section of the 2012 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) represent the largest single-step efficiency increase in the history of the national, model energy. The changes mean that new and renovated buildings constructed in jurisdictions that follow the 2012 IECC will use 30% less energy than those built to current standards.
| Nov 1, 2010
Sustainable, mixed-income housing to revitalize community
The $41 million Arlington Grove mixed-use development in St. Louis is viewed as a major step in revitalizing the community. Developed by McCormack Baron Salazar with KAI Design & Build (architect, MEP, GC), the project will add 112 new and renovated mixed-income rental units (market rate, low-income, and public housing) totaling 162,000 sf, plus 5,000 sf of commercial/retail space.
| Nov 1, 2010
John Pearce: First thing I tell designers: Do your homework!
John Pearce, FAIA, University Architect at Duke University, Durham, N.C., tells BD+C’s Robert Cassidy about the school’s construction plans and sustainability efforts, how to land work at Duke, and why he’s proceeding with caution when it comes to BIM.
| Nov 1, 2010
Vancouver’s former Olympic Village shoots for Gold
The first tenants of the Millennium Water development in Vancouver, B.C., were Olympic athletes competing in the 2010 Winter Games. Now the former Olympic Village, located on a 17-acre brownfield site, is being transformed into a residential neighborhood targeting LEED ND Gold. The buildings are expected to consume 30-70% less energy than comparable structures.
| Oct 27, 2010
Grid-neutral education complex to serve students, community
MVE Institutional designed the Downtown Educational Complex in Oakland, Calif., to serve as an educational facility, community center, and grid-neutral green building. The 123,000-sf complex, now under construction on a 5.5-acre site in the city’s Lake Merritt neighborhood, will be built in two phases, the first expected to be completed in spring 2012 and the second in fall 2014.
| Oct 21, 2010
GSA confirms new LEED Gold requirement
The General Services Administration has increased its sustainability requirements and now mandates LEED Gold for its projects.
| Oct 18, 2010
World’s first zero-carbon city on track in Abu Dhabi
Masdar City, the world’s only zero-carbon city, is on track to be built in Abu Dhabi, with completion expected as early as 2020. Foster + Partners developed the $22 billion city’s master plan, with Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, Aedas, and Lava Architects designing buildings for the project’s first phase, which is on track to be ready for occupancy by 2015.