HCM Celebrated it’s 2nd Annual Sporting Clay event. The HCM crew went out to the Minnesota Horse and Hunt Club for an adventure consisting of lunch, sport clay shooting, and an after shooting social hour. The weather was perfect for a fun, afternoon of team bonding and competitive shooting.
An HCM Design by Roger Christensen for a close friend out east, built for his sister-in-law, this little cottage in Virginia sits on the owners’ farmland overlooking the picturesque views of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The clean lines and bold black help it stand out amidst the beautiful mountainous backdrop. All the traditional elements and warmth of a typical cottage with a modern twist gives this little home a sleek, simplistic profile. Some of the design features include:
SIPS Panel Construction
Custom timber trusses
Metal roof
Radiant floor
Look at that view!
The Mississippi Watershed Management Organization contributed input and provided a grant for enhanced stormwater solutions on the City of Minneapolis Eastside Maintenance Facility.
Please take a minute to look over there site if you are interested. This group is doing great work to help reduce pollution and salination of one of our most valuable resources, while also providing immediate benefits related to reduced street flooding and increased pollinator habitats.
See more about this project:
Each week we continue to see significant progress at the BioTechne Saint Paul Facility.
The Penthouse is full of all the large Air Handling Units. The contractor has also started to install the Boiler, Chilled Water pumps, and supporting pipe / electrical panels.
On the Main level, we complete an Area rough-in walk through with the Owner each week. This ensures we are locating all the power, data, and other required utilities to each piece of equipment. As the rough-in walk through of each Area is complete, the contractor starts to close up the walls. As you can see in the attached image, Area A3 has purple board installed; next step in this Area is taping and mudding!
We are also seeing new equipment, large and small, arrive on-site. The large equipment is being rolled into place for the Team to review and make sure the utilities supporting it are installed in the correct locations.
The exterior chiller plant is also making headway. The wrap has been removed from the units and connections are being made between the units to the supporting equipment in the Penthouse above.
Next week we expect to see Metal Panel being installed at the Office Area which will be an exciting sight!
The HCM Office took a field trip to see the outcome of the Wildwood Library project that has finally wrapped up! The library will be opening at limited capacity on Monday, July 20, but our firm got a sneak peek ahead of the future grand opening. The library is a remodel of an existing building that was in the same location, but was demolished to allow for a brand new library to take its place. Some project highlights include the large glazing that allows for an optimal amount of daylighting and a feature fireplace with massive hand painted decorative tile. To see the progress of the construction of this building over time, click here and watch the Sensera time lapse.
HCM Architects would like to bid farewell and good luck to one of our fellow staff member Lindsay Leon as she returns back to her home state of California. She will be attending University of Southern California (USC) to begin her graduate program. We just want to give her a big THANK YOU!!! For not only all the work and projects you helped with here in your two-and-a-half-year journey with HCM, but for your friendship too. We wish you the best and know that you will do great at USC. Don’t be a stranger and good luck from all of us!
Here at HCM Architects, we know you miss traveling in the pre-pandemic days. We want to give you something to look forward to for when you finally return to the Minneapolis International Airport! We do a lot a hospitality projects at the airport and we have recently received updated photographs of some of our latest projects. Our projects vary from Minnesota classics like Caribou Coffee to gems like Zona Cocina. Take a look and plan where you want to go while you’re waiting for your next flight at MSP.
The construction team keeps chugging along over at the BioTechne St. Paul site. Now that it is midway through June, our team has walked through and finalized all the electrical details so that anything that needs to be changed can be changed before the interior walls are sealed up and ready for equipment to be brought in. The exterior of the office portion of the building is ready to have metal panels attached to complete the shell of the building, giving it the sleek, tech look that will give it a BioTechne feel. The penthouse on the roof is built and the Air Handling Units are starting to be put in place inside. They will support the equipment and building functions below. Week after week this building continues to transform.
HCM Architects is proud to show the results of our hard work on the City of Woodbury Public Works facility through a new collection of photographs taken by photographer Steve Silverman. The project was completed in 2019. The goal, after gaining an understanding of the City’s long-term vision, was to expand and consolidate the existing facilities to meet the demands of the city’s growing community. The facility consists of both office space and maintenance space allowing for coordination of work activities as well as facilitating efficiency, safety flexibility and communication. See below for an assortment of images of the new space.
As Minnesotans, we stand in solidarity with our communities of color to denounce racism, violence, and inequality in our city and, beyond that, our nation. At HCM we are listening to communities who are grieving and supporting those crying out for justice. We have much to learn from you - our friends, neighbors, clients, coworkers, and valued members of our community. We are thankful to be a part of this city and we are committed to doing this work together.
We echo and endorse the AIA’s Statement on Systemic Racial Injustice. Below is a portion of their address, but we encourage everyone to read their full statement.
“More than half a century has passed since Dr. Whitney M. Young, Jr. observed that “Decent people have to learn to speak up, and you shouldn’t have to be the victim to feel for other people.” We can’t change the past, but we can, and do, promise to harness the passion of our members and the broader design community to help lead efforts to dismantle the system of racial injustice that continues to end far too many lives and dim far too many futures.
AIA’s promise from this day forward is to hold close the anger, anguish, but above all, compassion we’ve heard from our members demanding that AIA speak out more clearly and urgently on racially motivated acts of violence and police brutality.”
Read full statement here:
May has been a busy month at the BioTechne GMP site. There has been some huge progress being made as the exterior work of the office piece continues and the the interior work throughout the facility begins in some areas and progresses in others. The huge facility requires many people working to keep the project running smoothly and the fantastic McGough Construction team is taking every precaution necessary to keep everyone on site safe and healthy while amidst the Covid-19 situation.
The renovation and addition to the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board Lyndale Farmstead Park Community Building is nearing completion. The exterior spring work is finishing up on the site and only a few minor punch-list items remain inside and out. We have had a great time working with MPRB and the EHF Neighborhood Association on this project and look forward to a grand opening once the current Covid-19 issues have subsided.
The BioTechne GMP Facility is going through a major part of its transformation as the exterior of the entrance and lobby gets an upgrade. The old windows are being removed, the corrugated metal paneling is being ripped off, and the rock face is being covered with a new beautiful sleek metal panel look that will make this building look much more high tech like the company it is representing.
The East Side Storage and Maintenance Facility project is almost finished as the team continues putting in the finishing touches and does the final walk-throughs. Now that the construction is mainly completed, the furniture is being installed and the building is being thoroughly cleaned. The Principal Architect on the project, Matt Lysne, even rode his bike along the trail at the site!
As the weather starts to get nicer this spring, work goes on at the Wildwood construction site. The crew is working hard while practicing social distancing to keep this project going. Throughout the entire project, there has been a live stream of the construction site available for viewing. Click here to see the progress at it updates!
During this time of social distancing, meet our WFH coworkers! Our furry little friends are happy to have us home. Without further ado, here are some of the Pets of HCM!
Meet Byron’s dog, Luna!
Meet Jeff’s dog, Lila!
Last but certainly not least, here is Liz’s dog, Sherman, accompanied by Liz’s youngest daughter, Celia.
The construction of the BioTechne GMP facilty is making great headway as we head into April. More and more bracing has been going up and the duct work and infrastructure for the manufacturing area is starting to come together.
As Minnesotans rally together to try and prevent the spread of COVID-19, our office has transitions to predominantly working from home during the State Mandated Executive Order. Architectural Services are deemed essential in that order and thus we are are providing full services for all of our clients within the guidelines of their workplace directives. To reach our staff, please reach out via email or cell phone numbers.
As such, some of our HCM family have sent in pictures of their home office set-ups so we can see how they are adjusting!
Now that the weather is nicer, we have a chance to see what the public art piece at the East Side site looks like at night. Thank you to Randy Walker for this great picture!
Things are moving along over at the BioTechne GMP Facility. HCM does a lot of projects for BioTechne at their main facility in Minneapolis, so transforming this new facility in St. Paul has been an adventure. Now that the construction crew has filled the pits in the concrete floor from the building’s previous use and prepared it for its new use, the building is ready for new framing to go up to support a whole new penthouse structure and its contents. This penthouse will support important mechanical equipment that will support much of the equipment in the facility. The structure of the penthouse is already being constructed! Soon, the team will be cutting large openings into an existing precast wall to allow for new piping and mechanical equipment to run throughout the facility. Even the roof is getting a refresh with new equipment. All the infrastructure has been carefully planned to make sure that the building runs as efficiently as possible!
