Lake|Flato Architects

We ventured out to Kickapoo Ranch for our annual Flake Lato retreat, and?the beautiful scenery and welcoming atmosphere set the perfect backdrop for bonding and creating unforgettable memories. From floating in the refreshing Nueces river to dancing to the tunes of the live band, each moment was filled with joy and laughter.?We’re feeling grateful and refreshed after another Flake Lato in the books - cheers to many more adventures with our growing team!?#flakelato2024?

We are thrilled to announce our partnership with?the University of Texas at Austin Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center and Studio Outside Landscape Architects to develop a new comprehensive plan that charts the next 20-30 years of the Center's growth as a community destination, research center and educational partner in Texas and beyond. This plan represents the next phase of the Center's leadership in public garden management and research while aligning with its objectives of conserving native plants and advocating for their incorporation into our everyday landscapes. According to Lake|Flato Partner Bob Harris: "By prioritizing this growth plan, the Wildflower Center is honoring its roots while deepening its impact—integrating conservation, education and research into a world-class destination that will bring a larger audience into closer dialogue with the natural world." We are excited to be collaborating with this remarkable team, the community and the Center’s visionary staff. More here: https://lnkd.in/gJU97tmH

We are proud to announce the dedication of Amy Gutmann Hall, Penn Engineering's new home for AI and data science. The building's striking and innovative design creates a space to unite AI research and data science across the University of Pennsylvania's 12 schools, encompassing fields as diverse as engineering, law and medicine. A model of sustainability, the building is constructed primarily from mass timber, which has a lower carbon footprint than steel or concrete. At six stories tall and 116,000 square feet, Amy Gutmann Hall is the tallest new mass timber building in the Philadelphia area and one of the largest on the East Coast.? ? Housing spaces for both research and teaching, Amy Gutmann Hall will train the next generation of scholars to mine data for insights that can be leveraged for the betterment of humanity. The building's flexible learning environments will also enhance Penn Engineering’s local community outreach and engagement programs, with the goal of increasing access to computer science instruction and addressing inequities in STEM fields. Lake|Flato and KSS would like to thank the University of Pennsylvania and our fellow collaborators for this tremendous opportunity and accomplishment.? ? Client: Penn Engineering? Executive Architect: Lake|Flato? Architects Associate Architect: KSS Architects? Structural, MEP/FP: Buro Happold? Fa?ade & Frit Design: Matsys Civil: Pennoni? Acoustics: Metropolitan Acoustics? Envelope: RWDI westcoast? Lab Design: RFD? Landscape Design: Ground Control Collaborative Signage: Cloud Gehshan Owner Structural Review: DCI Engineers? Mass Timber Design Assist: Nordic Structures? Contractor: Gilbane Building Company? Footage supplied by Penn Engineering?

For this year's PARKing Day, in collaboration with the Great Springs Project, our team brought to life a vibrant public space and educational community experience right in the heart of downtown San Antonio! Our partnership with the Great Springs Project stems from our shared values for nature, people, and connectivity. ? ? PARKing Day is an international event, which transforms metered parking spots into mini parks that encourage people to reimagine urban spaces. We are honored to participate in this annual celebration of creativity, sustainability, and the importance of green spaces in our daily lives! This year, a team of over 20 volunteers came together to create a temporary educational experience that shaped a narrative around the Great Springs Project, a non-profit organization that has been advocating for public and natural land conservation in Texas. This pavilion was designed around accessibility and creating a sense of place amid rapidly sprawling urbanization.? ? LF Team: Cheyenne Canterbury, Michael Coyle, Austin Corriher, Airon Castaneda, Heath Henderson, Mayle Lester, Shelan Jaf, Urvi Varma, Eva Martin, Abigail Hutchinson, Ella Weeks, Camille Lane, Aren Edwards, Ben Meyer, Yusuf Abdul-Rakib & Cameron Patterson? ? ??: Eva Martin, John Chamberlain, Cheyenne Canterbury & Austin Corriher.

We are excited to participate in the USGBC Building Transformation Forum this week! Lake|Flato's Design Performance Manager Kate Sector will be participating in the panel "Proven Approaches to Reducing Embodied Carbon in Buildings" tomorrow 9/12 from 2:15 - 3:15 p.m. at ACC Highland Campus, Recital Hall. For details & registration, click here: https://lnkd.in/gucjXMm4

We are thrilled to share that our renovated San Antonio office is WELL v2 Certified? at the Platinum level, the highest level of certification by the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI). This milestone is especially meaningful as we are the first WELL v2 Certified project in San Antonio. Achieving this rigorous certification reflects Lake Flato’s commitment to the health and well-being of our people. As architects, teachers, environmental stewards and community advocates, we believe that a space has the power to positively impact every person’s health, safety and well-being. We prioritize biophilic design by creating human-centered places that connect users to nature and provide healthy indoor environments. We believe that our employee’s health is paramount to our mission to design healthy buildings, and we are deeply committed to sustainable design and operations in each of our office locations. Obtaining this certification was the primary goal we established early in the design of our building’s renovation. We are thrilled to have achieved this goal and are thankful to the International WELL Building Institute for their guidance while we pursued this certification. Learn more: https://bit.ly/3MsOjQg

Join our team! Lake|Flato Architects, a nationally recognized architectural design firm, is looking for a collaborative and talented Urban Design Lead to join our urban design and planning studio in our Austin office. Our work seeks to balance the art and science of urban design, architecture, and interiors. Applicants should show experience and interest in all aspects of the design process and look forward to being part of an enthusiastic team. To learn more: https://lnkd.in/gVwsTYn

Congratulations to Kate Sector, Lake|Flato’s Design Performance Manager, on being recognized as Texas Society of Architects’ Associate Member of the Year! Kate is not only an emerging leader in sustainable architecture but also a passionate advocate for rethinking design practices to create a positive impact on the environment. ? Since joining Lake|Flato, Kate has significantly enhanced the firm’s design performance initiatives. In her role as Design Performance Manager, she sets significant?project goals, conducts thorough evaluations, and cultivates a culture of sustainability among her colleagues. The creation of Lake|Flato’s Design Performance Action Plan and her research, publications, and lectures on embodied carbon and climate resilience demonstrate her impact both locally and nationally.?This research is critical as it supports better design practices and promotes a broader understanding of the importance of climate resilience and adaptation nationwide. ? According to AIA San Antonio Executive Director Torrey Carleton, “Kate has a deep knowledge of sustainability and passion for sharing that knowledge with her peers and those in the pipeline.” She has been a leader in AIA San Antonio’s Committee on the Environment and started a COTE Top 10 Student Competition at the University of Texas San Antonio that inspired the start of a student COTE chapter. This year, Kate?has joined the Texas Society of Architects’ Committee on the Environment and AIA San Antonio’s Professional Practice Leadership Program.?Through her collaborations, research, and contributions to the industry, Kate exemplifies the qualities of a pioneering leader in sustainable architecture.? ? Congratulations to those who were recognized with 2024 Texas Society of Architects’ Honor Awards! Learn more: https://bit.ly/3LHE2PI

#LF40, 1991: The early 90s brought about major world events, from Operation Desert Storm to the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Johnny Carson retired from a 30-year reign on The Tonight Show and The Silence of the Lambs won best picture. ? ? In 1991, El Tule, a ranch in South Texas, was transformed from a blank canvas of open grassland and dense oak mottes into a unique home. The design team chose to build the house on a dune, floating it in the grassland, and used caliche block construction with thick walls, limited openings, and generous overhangs to create a sustainable and cozy space. The rooms circle a courtyard that serves as an oasis and rather than traditional porches, a breezeway connects the rooms to allow the cool coastal breezes in. This was one of the first of many houses that enjoyed “side porches” (dog runs) in lieu of “front porches.” The result is a house that is deeply connected to its surroundings.? ? The house construction turned into an odyssey. The remoteness, where the construction crew had to live together at the site, combined with the cumbersome hydraulic press that turned ranch dirt into bricks that were “dry stacked” during the wettest year in history, resulted in one of our earliest explorations of what our Porch House concept needed to be.?

That's a wrap! This year's Society for College and University Planning (SCUP) in Philadelphia highlighted advancements in the planning of higher education facilities. Through tours, presentations and panel discussions, Lake|Flato shared our latest higher education work, including the creation of an adaptively-reused Business and Humanities District for Trinity University and the mass timber Amy Gutmann Hall, a new home for data science & AI for Penn Engineering (with KSS Architects). We look forward to sharing a completed Amy Gutmann Hall at this year's Greeenbuild Conference in November, also in Philadelphia. Kerry Phillips, AIA Ryan Jones Andrew Herdeg #scup #highered #universityarchitecture #masstimber #sustainabledesign