his project is an adaptive reuse of a 1910 marine supply building in the industrial neighborhood of Ballard. The upgraded building stretches the urban core to the south with a mix of new services: offices, retail and restaurant space. Graham Baba designed the shell and core renovations; interiors for the nationally renowned restaurant, The Walrus and the Carpenter; and offices for Turnstyle Design and Duo Public Relations.

The goal of adaptive reuse of the historically significant building was to preserve a vernacular that is quickly disappearing in Ballard. New transparent storefronts inserted into the existing building open the interior to the streetscape and encourage pedestrian activity. Sidewalk cafés create outdoor “living rooms”. The penthouse office suite addition is placed on top of the existing roof in careful consideration of the scale of the neighborhood while adding more square footage. The addition was analyzed and positioned with consideration of the solar orientation and double story heights to assist in natural ventilation. West windows are carefully sized to reduce solar heat gain, while preserving water views. The project creatively reused salvaged and reclaimed materials throughout the project for partitions, interior wall finishes, cabinets and countertops, enabling it to meet its tight budget.