PERSPECTIVES
RODE was in Haverhill last month to meet with the building department for our second project in the downtown area. We are very excited to collaborate with Traggorth Companies on the historic 87 Washington Street building. The adaptive reuse of the long vacant space will bring commercial amenities and apartments to the dynamic, urban downtown.
During our visit, we had a chance to stop by Quinn’s Canine Café, the newest commercial tenant at JM Lofts, our first project in Haverhill. The space looks great, and we hear that the city and surrounding town residents are thrilled to have a specialty pet bakery. These three commercial tenants at JM Lofts, Quinn’s Canine Café, Battle Grounds Coffee, and Casa Creatives Photography, demonstrate the energy and potential for the revitalization in Downtown Haverhill.
In addition to new commercial spaces drawing people to the city, the first Shoe City Pro Circuit cycling race took place in July and passed in front of JM Lofts, and there are some fantastic photos from Casa Creatives Photography.
Keep an eye on RODE for more updates on 87 Washington!
This past winter, the West Broadway Hotel team had the opportunity to build the firm's first model room. Ahead of the full interior build out of the Cambria hotel, located at the gateway into South Boston, our team was able to construct a full scale mock-up of the typical hotel room. Model rooms are an important part of the process for a hotel build - ensuring client, brand, and operations approval before building and furnishing a hotel room multiple times, in this case 159 times.
The experience of building a model room for this size of project was incredibly helpful and informative for the building of the remainder of the project. It was a great test run for all project participants and trades to complete final system coordination and practice how they would complete the construction for the entire roll out. The project team had the ability to predict problems or complications that may happen in the field and make adjustments accordingly. With such a tight footprint, every inch counted within the guest rooms for both the guest experience and the success of the operations team.
While framing and plumbing was going in surrounding the model room location, as soon as you passed through the door into the unit, it felt as though you just checked in for the weekend, right down to the room service menus, coffee and tea selections, and linens.
Once the model room was completed, the owner, hotel brand, and future operations team were invited to visit the room and provide feedback to the design team. In an effort to make the full roll out as successful as possible, RODE made updates to the drawings and room pieces. Overall, the exercise of building the model room was a great success as it gave the entire team an opportunity to make any adjustments before building the final rooms, reducing the amount of changes made in field and improving the future guest's experience.
Last week, RODE principal Kevin Deabler had the opportunity to speak with students at Cathedral High School for the biennial WilmerHale Career Day. Kevin has volunteered at the Career Day the last 8 years as a way to help prepare students for success in their future. Throughout the day, Kevin met with Cathedral students and discussed why he chose to become an architect and the greater good that can be achieved through design. His discussion directly relates to RODE's philosophy of “building where we live” and how as designers, we have an opportunity to make a positive impact on our communities, and greater Boston, through thoughtful architecture and design.
Last week, RODE Architects had the pleasure of joining Illuminate lighting group at Rosie's Place, a women's shelter in the South End, to prepare meals for local women and children. Together, RODE and Illuminate helped serve 132 lunches and begin the prep work for that evening's dinner. Since opening in 1974 as the first women-only shelter in the United States, Rosie's Place has provided hot breakfast, lunch, and dinner 365 days a year to poor and homeless women and children. They also support the community by providing a safe and nurturing environment that allows women to maintain their dignity, seek opportunity and find security in their lives through a broad range of tools and services. These include a food pantry, emergency housing, advocacy services, and health and wellness care. The RODE team genuinely enjoyed being able to give back to the community and support the people in their neighborhood in the South End.
If you are interested in volunteering at Rosie's Place, head to their website to learn more: http://www.rosiesplace.org/volunteer
The tobacco farm-aesthetic that diners can now experience at Southern Proper, the South End’s newest eatery, was designed by Boston-based RODE Architects. Located on the ground floor of 600 Harrison Ave., RODE Architects developed its southern hospitality concept for the restaurant in tight collaboration with the food vision of Executive Chef and Owner Jason Cheek.
While having worked in the Boston architecture landscape for over 20 years, both Founder/Principals of RODE Architects have strong ties to the South; it was at NC State that the friends-turned-business-partners met and acquired their design degrees, making for the perfect partnership with Cheek, who drew from his North Carolina roots to bring “a taste of home” to Boston through the creation of Southern Proper.
The fully-integrated design approach of RODE’s interior group involved getting to know Cheek to fully understand his conceptual vision and operational needs. Many chefs have a very specific culinary inspiration for their food and craft, and through RODE’s rigorous design process they transform the culinary vision into the built environment, ensuring a thoughtful and well-executed dining experience.
To compliment Southern Proper’s authentic dishes and drinks, Cheek sought to outfit the restaurant with a unique environment. Jessica Haley, RODE’s lead interior designer, headed up this effort, developing a design concept that provides authentic, thoughtful nods to a southern home: relaxed, inviting and slightly eclectic. The design incorporates the feeling of a “down-home Sunday dinner,” a concept that inspired the centrally located oval bar. Additional elements, co-designed and fabricated with BHaley Designs, include seating options for large family-style tables, high tops and dining height tables. Custom designed tiered standing tables are positioned for casual eating and mingling. Further inspiration came from that of a traditional tobacco barn to create the ‘bones’ of the space where raw pine timbers crisscross overhead and rough sawn planks are back lit above the bar.
RODE incorporated traditional elements in a contemporary way throughout the space, for example creating a bar top made from a series of antique old dining room tables, and the hanging reclaimed table lamps upside down to make “old comfort” feel unexpected. The design also incorporates antique style wallpaper and light fixtures, green and gold accents, and smoke-infused, raw pine walls that allow natural light to seep in through the floor to high-vaulted ceiling spanning the perimeter.
"Southern Proper is paying homage to Jason’s roots, and he took great pains to deliver a traditional southern experience, so we wanted to ensure the atmosphere would reflect that vibe in the most authentic ways possible,” said Eric Robinson, principal and co-founder, RODE Architects.
The growth of RODE Architect’s interiors group echoes the broader demand for design expertise and services that bring the firm’s clients' visions to reality, such as the work achieved for notable spaces including Commonwealth Market and Restaurant, Coppersmith, Dot Brewery, La Brasa and SRV. RODE’s architectural and interior designers collaborate on a wide array of project types, from corporate to hospitality and mixed use. For more information visit www.rodearchitects.com.
Images by Sarah Storrer
