Location, location, location. M-K-T Heights has it in spades. The mixed-use development is a creative reuse of five 1970s-era industrial buildings. But M-K-T’s location in the high-demand Heights area of Houston and its 1,000 linear foot frontage along the popular Heights Hike-and-Bike Trial have quickly made the mix of office, retail, and restaurants a go-to destination. Developers Triton Real Estate Partners and Radom Capital seek out buildings and sites that are ripe for renovation and turn them into “cool, inviting” spaces, says lighting designer Lance Gandy of Gandy 2 Lighting Design. Michael Hsu Office of Architecture re-envisioned the aggregate concrete buildings into a lively blending of textures, colors, and materials. A 40-foot-high yellow spine leads visitors from the parking area to the public outdoor plaza in the center of the site.

Gandy selected Landscape Forms Arne catenary fixtures for the site. “Arne’s design works within the broader landscape design and architecture. The fixtures have an appealing horizontal form that fits well with the horizontal, low geometry of M-K-T,” he says. “And the catenary application becomes an extension of the spine as the fixtures lead people out of the spine and across the site.”

“Catenary systems are a refined and elevated way to light outdoor space,” says lighting designer Lance Gandy.