An iconic Austin office building, built in 1960, has undergone a complete renovation by local architecture firm, Mark Odom Studio. Cantilevering towards North Lamar Blvd, this mid-century structure is nestled along a main Austin thoroughfare and integral midtown park district.

Meredith and Tyler Spears, owners of the heritage and family operated insurance company BKCW, bought the building for its iconic mid-century architecture which they felt reflected their company culture, attitude, and goals. The project then began not only as a full renovation of the 3,000 square foot office building built in 1960 (by architects Pendley & Day), but also as an adaptive reuse, ensuring the true preservation of the original building.

Over the years, the project had been internally subdivided, limiting the experience of the original building stature. Mark Odom Studio quickly set out to fully open the space, a nod to the open office layout seen in insurance and advertising companies in the mid-1960s. This approach fully expressed the entire building volume by not only opening up the interior, but by allowing the prominent glass facades to flood the space with natural light.

To accomplish many of the reuse portions, the project salvaged as much existing brick as possible and replaced existing storefront windows with new energy efficient glazing, framed with steel mullions to match the original window pattern. Internally and externally, the use of mid-century materials, such as vintage brick, stained wood paneling, and cork flooring, brought this project back to is former life. The careful resourcing of these details made it possible to update the original low ceiling, raising it one foot to achieve eight-foot ceiling heights throughout, with a seamless transition inside and out.

“For our office, the most exciting part of this design process was treating this more like an adaptive reuse project rather than just a renovation. Preserving this iconic 60-year-old building was of course a must—but tricky to pull off. Raising the roof and ceiling, opening the interior, and finding vintage brick were just a few of the big design choices that helped it really come to life.” says Mark Odom, of Mark Odom Studio.

Keeping the dedicated views towards downtown Austin and Pease District Park was critical, both for the client and for the visual experience for the employees. Complementing the very public southern and western views, the eastern windows now face a revitalized subterranean back courtyard, which acts as a respite from the North Lamar traffic. On the exterior, both the front, park facing deck and the southern, down-town facing deck were added and expanded to accentuate the horizontality of the original structure while also providing more generous entry points for visitors and employees.

Cork Flooring: 

Artisan worked closely with the owners and Mark Odom team to select a floor covering that would be resilient enough for commercial office space, while maintaining the Mid-Century design aesthetic.  Cork met all of the project requirements and a ½” x 12” x 36” self-locking cork tile was selected.  This product is multi-ply construction with ample sound attenuation, underlayment, and moisture control all in one platform. 

A unique challenge with this historic remodel was the subfloor.  There were multiple elevation changes from one area to the next and several overall leveling issues present in the slab. We used approximately 90, 50 lb bags of self-leveling floor patch along with many hours of grinding to create the appropriate surface for the new Cork floor. 

Another interesting concern for a project of this design style is perimeter expansion.  With the clean lines found in Mid-Century design - a feature the Mark Odom team beautifully incorporated into this project, the traditional places expansion is located were not readily available. It was up to Franklin Allan’s project manager and Artisan’s team to devise creative ways to include proper expansion under built-in furniture, in closets, and under cabinets instead of under baseboards and moldings.

Exterior Decking:

Artisan also constructed a four hundred square foot Ipe deck at the employee entrance, which includes a single-story chair lift from the parking area below.  The deck is highlighted by a waterfall edge facing Lamar Blvd. Ipe was an amazing choice for this area due to its innate rot resistance and natural beauty.  Ipe maximized durability and longevity while keeping in the design of the project.