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The post-coronavirus pandemic home will have more walls, more porches, more flex rooms and dedicated office areas, plus tiny houses for mom and dad

Your home has been called upon to play many different roles during the past few months of the coronavirus pandemic. Its been an office, schoolhouse, videoconference room, home gym and more.

Often, however, its performance has been lacking, thanks to slow internet service, uncomfortable seating and uncooperative co-workers (i.e. noisy children).

After spending so much time indoors during the pandemic, many people may want to upgrade their living space by rethinking their homes layout. Others may want to renovate their homes to take advantage of outdoor space or move to a new home that does.

Making these kinds of changes is a long, slow process, said Adam Reed, vice president at Ford Powell & Carson Architects & Planners. Were still in the midst of pandemic, so its too soon to know exactly what changes well see yet.

In recent years, the open floor plan, where the kitchen, dining room, living room and den were one uninterrupted, wall-free space, has been falling out of favor. The pandemic may hasten that trend.

In a home with two adults, several school-age children and, as has become commonplace, a boomerang adult child or two all living under one roof, finding someplace private to work has become important.

Many families may need several discrete places to work, architect Stephanie Eugster said. Its lovely that you get to spend most of the day with your family, but everyone needs a place for themselves.

While it is possible to build walls and hang doors to partition off spaces, Eugster said she doesnt see that happening very widely. Instead, the flex room may be the answer. A concept borrowed from office buildings, these are rooms that, with little effort, can be customized to serve multiple purposes.

On ExpressNews.com: The coronavirus will change office design, bringing back cubicles and nixing break rooms

For example, the dining room, long on the outs in new builds, may make a comeback, serving as a workspace during the week and a place to entertain guests when home entertaining becomes a thing again. Or a home office located in a repurposed bedroom might be furnished with an easy-to-move desk so it can quickly be converted back to a bedroom for weekend guests.

With so many people living together, there may be a boom in soundproofing curtains, second walls, composite materials so mom or dad can take a Zoom meeting or conference call while young children are running around, predicted Kathryn ORourke, associate professor of art history at Trinity University.

She also speculated about new housing arrangements to provide a separate space for aging parents or adult children who have lost their jobs. These include more tiny houses or even shipping containers in suburban backyards. She also foresees more houses with wings that can be occupied semiprivately, while still connected to a common kitchen or dining area.

People may be rethinking domesticity in really interesting ways because of this pandemic, she said.

While its still early to know how, or even if, the pandemic will change what homebuyers look for in a new home, Kim Bragman said shes already seeing an uptick in interest in one area.

Couples who both work from home want dedicated office space, said Bragman, the chairwoman of the San Antonio Board of Realtors. Or at least an extra bedroom they can convert into an office.

COVID-19 fears also may result in a shift in the definition of luxury, according to Reed.

It might not mean installing the most beautiful of faucets in the master bath anymore, he said. Instead it might be a touchless faucet with a built-in filtration system.

This wont be the first time a disease has triggered substantial changes in residential architecture.

The tuberculosis epidemic of the 19th century and the 1918 influenza both spurred the creation of large sanatoria open to the outdoors so patients could get plenty of fresh air and sunlight, thought to be key to a patients recovery, ORourke said.

This open-air concept eventually spilled over into residential architecture.

You can see it in those large front porches built into so many homes from that time, she said.

Front porches have long been out of favor with developers. Few homes built since the 1950s have them. But the pandemic may change that as many people rediscover the simple joys of sitting on their porch, watching the world go by.

On ExpressNews.com: The secret pleasures of under-the-radar chats during Zoom video conference calls

After youve been living in your home or apartment for so many weeks, you appreciate being outdoors, even if its only sitting on a porch waving to your neighbors as they walk by on the street, said Ted Flato, partner at Lake | Flato Architects. Its an easy way to add more living space to your home.

Adding a porch to an existing home is simpler and less expensive than adding a heated and air-conditioned extension, such as a bedroom or den. The website Homeadvisors.com, which matches homeowners with contractors, estimates that a 200-square-foot covered porch will cost between $4,600 to $22,000, or an average of $10,500. That works out to $23 to $110 per square foot.

At the beginning of the pandemic, many people sent home to work plopped a computer onto their kitchen or dining room table and declared it an office. But those wholl be working from home for the foreseeable future may want to up their internet game.

Perhaps the best way to do this is to wire the home with Category 5, or Cat 5, cables. These are low-voltage wires that can be run through the walls, the attic or even the subflooring. They connect the router to the devices plugged into the network so you dont have to use Wi-Fi. The connection provides a faster, steadier and more secure signal, so colleagues will be less likely to freeze up during your next Zoom conference.

Weve been seeing a lot more new houses built with Cat 5 in recent years, said Irby Hightower, a senior principal at Alamo Architects, and homeowners are also installing the cables in existing homes.

Cat 5 also makes it easier to install and operate smart home devices that can be controlled over the internet, such as security cameras, lighting and door locks.

As more people work from home, this kind of technology will become a lot more prominent, Hightower said.

Multifamily apartments will pose their own challenges to post-pandemic architecture, said Rick Lewis, assistant professor in practice at the University of Texas at San Antonios College of Architecture, Construction and Planning.

You have between 300 and 500 people living in the kind of developments that have been going up in San Antonio over the past 10 years or so, he said. Social distancing is much harder here, especially in the public spaces.

Lewis said he foresees changes to building codes requiring an enlargement of so-called pinch points where people come in close contact to one another. These include mail areas, hallways and elevator waiting areas. He also said amenities such as party rooms, weight rooms and swimming pools may get smaller or even disappear if residents remain uncomfortable using them.

Therell be a lot of conversation about things like this among architects, urban planners and politicians in the coming years, he said.

Not everyone is convinced the pandemic will result in structural changes in residential architecture.

Weve had viruses in the past and, yes, this one is deeper, longer and with more consequences, architect Paul Franklin said. But Im not anticipating any permanent changes per se. I think this is largely a one-off thing.

And while home shoppers may be looking for different features today than they were four months ago, Bragman said that for most, their bottom line remains the same.

Until I see otherwise, todays buyers are looking for schools and amenities, same as they always have, she said.

rmarini@express-news.net

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The post-coronavirus pandemic home will have more walls, more porches, more flex rooms and dedicated office areas, plus tiny houses for mom and dad -...

The weather is great and everyone is outside, but you cant interact like you used to do because of the pandemic and the government-recommended six-foot social distancing rule. But luckily, that rule doesnt mean you have to be socially distant and you can still interact with people as long as youre smart, aware, and give each other some space. Like interacting with an ex-lover or estranged family member. Enter the porch.

Porches are great, theyre public and private at the same time, inside and outside. IF eyes are the window to your soul, porches are the windows to our homes well, windows are the windows, but you get my meaning.

Porches are a silent hero in our neighborhoods during the pandemic as they allow us to interact with passerby without putting ourselves at risk in the street. They operate as a soft edge, or membrane between individuals and the community in which they live and should be celebrated.

The folks over at The Musicant Group (Website) in St. Paul, Minnesota, have come up with a step-by-step process to transform porches and front yards into places that make your community feel more alive. People are converting their boring swaths of manicured grass into more dynamic places that can facilitate safe, neighborly interactions and we cant think of a better time for that to happen than right now.

Click HERE for a Pinterest Board full of fun and amazing ideas to activate your front yards.

It also happens to be Global Porch Placemaking Week from May 30-June 5, and before you yell at us that thats not even a thing, click HERE. Its a self-organized event that encourages people to activate their front yards, porches, or even stoops, with a fun project and to add it to a special Porch Placemaking map. Get some inspiration via their Facebook page HERE.

Continued here:
Stay connected with a friendly front yard - bungalower - Bungalower

BATON ROUGE - One local jazz band is shaking off the rust from the stay-at-home order in a unique way.

Since the band members havent been able to play together in the past two months, The Jazz Souls have started playing, what they call, 'front porch sessions' in the Poets Corner neighborhood of Baton Rouge.

Were the type of people that if were not playing, you get this itch. Its nice to be able to scratch it, upright bass player David Randall said.

That itch had been building for weeks for Randall and the other three members of the band.

We play jazz standards, some might call us an American songbook band, drummer and founding member of the band Dale Harris said.

For two months, the group of 12 years had no gigs to play, and no practice sessions together.

So, we missed that during the outbreak. And Gary says... no, it was my idea. I said, let's get on our porch, thats enough social distancing. And let the neighbors listen if they want but lets practice. I really missed it, Randall said.

We sounded a lot better than we thought we would, having not played together for a while. We thought we were going to sound pretty terrible. But, I dont know, sounded pretty good. The people seem to enjoy it, Harris said.

Thursday night was only their third front porch gig on the corner of Homer and Pericles Street, but theyve already acquired some neighborhood fans.

It was quite a surprise the other day when about 10, 15 people showed up, and actually, threw money in the tip jar. It was sweet. We werent looking for that. Though we did put the tip jar out, Randall said.

Randall says theres a lot of noise surrounding our lives right now, but not the kind you tap your feet to.

We take the masks off when we play. I have it in my pocket, dear, I promise, Randall said, laughing.

Jokes aside, he says this time has given him a greater overall appreciation for his passion for music.

I didnt even realize how much live music there already was in Baton Rouge, and its gonna come back. Slowly, but surely, Randall said.

The Jazz Souls will be playing at least once a week either on Tuesdays or Thursdays from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

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Local jazz band shaking off the rust with neighborhood front porch sessions - WBRZ

A new outdoor porch big enough for six socially-distanced picnic tables decked out in Red Arrow checkerboard style. Photo/Carol Robidoux

MANCHESTER, NH Theres something brewing at the Red Arrow Diner on Lowell Street besides coffee.

A new outdoor seating area that stretches the length of the diner is ready for customers, says Jayme Lemay, General Manager.

Now you can eat your Smokey Pig Breakfast Bowl with a mug of bacon while enjoying the sunshine and fresh air.

At first we were a little skeptical about it, but once we saw it, its pretty amazing, Lemay said. He really did a great job.

He is a reference to Brian Lawrence, brother of Carol Lawrence, the woman behind the citys most iconic eatery. The wood structure supports a sloping green vinyl topper, which appears to snap on. There are four tables under the enclosed area and two more out in the sunshine.

Its almost ready, Lemay said. Were going to have a fence around it here, and umbrellas are on the way for these two tables.

Diners wishing to sit and eat rather than grab and go can enter the diner and place their order, and let servers know theyre sticking around. Food will be served on the porch.

The picnic tables should provide about the same space if not more than the existing indoor tables, which is a win for eateries like the Red Arrow, where counter seating is the most popular option. During the states Stay Home 2.0 order indoor dining has been off-limits, but there was a return to outdoor dining on May 18. Restaurants are looking forward to the next phase which should include indoor dining at a reduced capacity.

The new rules of engagement or lack thereof has encouraged restaurant owners like Lawrence to get creative with use of available space.

It went up like magic, said a man named Charlie who was admiring the construction from across the street. He said he watched it go up.

It took like two days. And look how nice and straight it is, he said. This is going to be nice.

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And like that, Red Arrow's new outdoor porch is ready for the return of restaurant dining - Manchester Ink Link

As an intern for The Boldt Company, Fox Valley Technical College student Dylan Casey helped build temporary care centers to support emergency room overflow due to COVID-19 for Aurora Health Care in Green Bay, Marinette, Oshkosh and Two Rivers.(Photo: Courtesy of Fox Valley Technical College)

GRAND CHUTE - Whatever profession he chose to pursue, Dylan Casey has always wanted to feel like he's making a difference.

That's why the 20-year-old Portage native landed on construction, an industry that's vital to maintaining infrastructure, building communities, as well as ensuring allbuildings hospitals, office buildings, whatever else are safe and up-to-date.

In his second semester as a student of Fox Valley Technical College's construction management technology program, Casey is already well on his way to making the difference he'd dreamed of. Just not in the way he imagined.

About three months into his gig as a field engineer intern for The Boldt Company, the coronavrius pandemic hit, shutting down businesses and schools including his own FVTC across Wisconsin and the nation.

Dylan Casey, 20, studies construction management technology at Fox Valley Technical College.(Photo: Courtesy of FVTC)

Instead of hunkering down at home, Casey found himself among those considered "essential workers" and helped build temporary care centers to support emergency room overflow for Aurora Health Care locations in Green Bay, Marinette, Oshkosh andTwo Rivers.

Though the internship is now over economic fallout from COVID-19 caused it to be rescinded early last month Casey is grateful for the learning experience.

"The impact that construction makes is kind of the reason I'm in it," Casey said. "It's something I'm passionate about, so this is a story that will be engraved in my memory for a long time. It was just unreal to be part of this."

While Casey was previously focusedon juggling school with Boldt projects at Kimberly Clark and the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, frommid-March onward, his focus shifted to serving as a key liaison between construction workers and vendors in acquiring supplies for two main projects: Constructing drive-thru testing facilities and overflow tents used to treat patients.

As an intern for The Boldt Company, Fox Valley Technical College student Dylan Casey helped build temporary care centers to support emergency room overflow due to COVID-19 for Aurora Health Care in Green Bay, Marinette, Oshkosh and Two Rivers.(Photo: Courtesy of Fox Valley Technical College)

The turnaround time for those projects? Just two weeks.

The experience was a bit of a whirlwind, Casey said, but he feels it was invaluable to his future in construction.

"Being out in the field is where I feel like I'm able to learnthe most," Casey said. "And what I learned above all is that construction is very unpredictable. It's never going to be the same day to day. You learn quickly that the industry is always changing and always adapting to people's needs."

But that got Casey thinking about how his classmates we're doing, many of them stuck at home and learning online because, understandably, field trips aren't a safe option. So, he decided to share his experiencesby making a video showcasing the fast-paced construction process.

"You don't really learn from behind a computer ... When you're sitting in class and learning about all the building codes, you tend to get a little lost in it all," Casey said. "So I think if someone's able to share this with other students, I thought it'd be a really good learning tool."

Casey said the class discussion of his video also allowed him to learn more and think about the construction process differently.

"It was really cool to see (my classmates') comments," Casey said. "They pointed out things I didn't even think of."

Rich Cass, a construction management technology instructor at FVTC, said the footage was invaluable to his online classes.

The video tours bring a real-world scenario to class to supplement the field trips we cannot normally do because of COVID-19, he said. Dylans ability to think critically demonstrates his passion for others on both a job site and in class.

MORE:Wisconsin's rural school districts face major barriers to keeping learning going through coronavirus closures: namely, internet access

MORE:What's a 'P-plus'? Here's how Wisconsin schools will grade students for a semester interrupted by coronavirus.

MORE:Here's how Fox Valley high schools and colleges are planning to handle graduation in the age of coronavirus

Contact reporter Samantha West at 920-996-7207 or swest@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @BySamanthaWest.

Read or Share this story: https://www.postcrescent.com/story/news/education/2020/05/21/fvtc-student-helps-build-coronavirus-testing-facilities-tents/3116348001/

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Fox Valley Technical College student gets a crash course in construction in the middle of a pandemic - Post-Crescent

Issued May 11-15

TOWNHOUSE: 105 Jeanmard Drive, Lafayette; Maison De La Paix Inc., Phase 2, addition 1, owner; Le Centre Evangeline Corp., applicant; Oak River Construction LLC, contractor; $275,000.

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OFFICE BUILDING: 330 Fisher Road, Lafayette; BVD Lab And Exhibit Building, owner and applicant; Garden City Construction Co., contractor; $1,191,170.

SCHOOL/LIBRARY: 400 Patterson St., Lafayette; Lafayette Parish School Board, owner; The Corne Lemaire Group, applicant; Acadiane Renovations, contractor; $1,557,200.

OTHER: 4400 Ambassador Caffery Parkway, Lafayette; ABS DFW Investor LLC, owner; description, Albertsons N0. 0179; Fidel T. Lucio, applicant; Robert Holton, contractor; $0.

OTHER: 4207 Cameron St., Lafayette; Georges Antoun, owner; description, Kibberia Food Processing Kitchen; Philippe E. Prouet, Poche Prouet Associates LLC, applicant; Southwest Contractors LLC, contractor; $448,000.

OFFICE BUILDING: 102 Versailles Blvd., Lafayette; Versailles Centre, owner; description, CGI-Versailles Renovation Package; Rachel Roussel, ACSW Architects, applicant; JB Mouton Inc., contractor; $394,124.

201 Facile Road, Scott;description, metal storage building with living area; Sweeping Striping Services Inc.; $45,000.

212 Maple Branch St., Lafayette; Lancaster Construction LLC; $243,000.

109 Spider Lily Lane, Lafayette; DSLD LLC; $234,000.

308 Adry Lane, Youngsville; Manuel Builders; $193,500.

906 Deer Meadow Blvd., Broussard; DSLD Homes; $202,818.

702 Deer Meadow Blvd., Broussard; DSLD Homes; $287,690.

716 Deer Meadow Blvd., Broussard; DSLD Homes; $202,818.

800 Deer Meadow Blvd., Broussard; DSLD Homes; $289,917.

812 Deer Meadow Blvd., Broussard; DSLD Homes; $287,690.

910 Deer Meadow Blvd., Broussard; DSLD Homes; $260,471.

706 Deer Meadow Blvd., Broussard; DSLD Homes; $287,690.

119 Chloe St., Broussard; DSLD Homes; $209,334.

121 Chloe St., Broussard; DSLD Homes; $202,818.

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Who's building where in Acadiana? Here are the building permits issued May 11-15 - The Advocate

Prior to the coronavirus outbreak, the AE firm Gresham Smith had a client in Tennessee that was in the process of consolidating 1,000 of its employees into an office building that already had 1,000 of its workers. This client would never have discussed the words free addresses or shared desking, says Jack Weber, IIDA, LEED AP, the firms Senior Vice President and Design Principal. But after the virus spread to its market, were doing planning to evaluate unassigned desking for that company, says Weber.

The consideration of additional remote working alternatives and possibly unassigned seating is to create greater desired flexibility for employees, now that the client has tested and invested in remote working and is gaining trust in its employees, explains Weber. The other considerations are for future risk mitigation that will increase business continuity and resiliency during future events. Weber says a second client is also considering this future strategy.

The workplace, post COVID-19, is being viewed as the first line of defense in preventing the spread of infectious germs, states J. Kevin Heinly, AIA, LEED AP, Principal and Managing Director of Genslers San Diego office. In a paper he wrote about redesigning office lobbies, Heinly homed in on improving air quality, designing with antimicrobial materials, leveraging automation and voice activation, and using sensors to screen visitors.

It seemed that everyone had an opinion about workplace infection control. Even National Geographic chimed in with an articlethat explored how the pandemic exacerbated workers fears about returning to workplaces with open-office spaces.

MassMotion, Arups pedestrian dynamics and evacuation simulation software, can also be used to guide the design in environments like office buildings and parks with an eye toward social distancing. In the simulations, agents within six feet turn red and have their time in proximity logged to help test population and operational scenarios.

The digital library site Scribd posted a Back to Work Checklist,based on guidelines established by Congresss bipartisan Member Problem-Solving Caucus, which laid out the public health and economic criteria necessary for workplaces to reopen, including rapid and ubiquitous testing and establishing a contact tracing database.

COVID-19 created a need for workplace continuity in such areas as crisis management, business planning, and disaster recovery planning, says Peter Miscovich, JLLs Managing Director of Strategy and Innovation. Developers, building managers, AEC firms, and tenant companies had to think harder about what it would take to make returning office workers more comfortable and confident that their workplaces are continuously safe.

BuroHappold Engineerings head of analytics Shrikant Sharma cant see how workplace models that include assembly lines and open-plan offices would be tenable for the foreseeable future. Such settings are not conducive to social distancing, says Sharma, who is the Group Director of the firm's Smart Space team.

Using predictive modeling that draws on Internet-of-Things data sets, BuroHappold concluded that beyond 40% occupancy, revisions to desk layout and high footfall areas will be needed to keep occupants six feet from each other.

The future of office space is less densification: far less benching and hoteling, more private areas, more virtual meetings, concurs Andrew Horning, LEED AP, Vice President and COVID-19 Task Force Leader with Bala Consulting Engineers. During the pandemic, Bala published a white paperthat offers detailed infection-control guidelines and solutions for HVAC, filtration, bipolar ionization, UV lighting, pressurization and airflow, humification, ductwork sanitization, and air purification, as well as separate solutions for plumbing, technology, and workplace environment.

Bala recommended imposing greater control on what and who come into buildings. It anticipated greater demand for negative air pressure in common areas like kitchens, says Scott Davis, PE, the firms Vice President and COVID-19 Research Leader. The coronavirus aftermath could even trigger more building renovations and repurposing, says Charles Kensky, Balas Executive Vice President and COVID-19 Research leader.

Its safe to say that we wont go back to the way things were, says Steve Riojas, Global Director of Education and Technology with HDR. Sharron van der Meulen, Partner and Interior Design Practice Leader with ZGF Architects in Portland, Ore., added that as people returned to their workplaces, tenants will need to do some backtracking on space and amenities to discourage workers from gathering in larger groups.

To that end, Cushman & Wakefield, Hines, Delos, and the Well Living Lab in late April announced a collaboration to evaluate methods and establish guidelines for a safe return back to work. The Lab, which is adjacent to the Mayo Clinic campus in Rochester, Minn., is using its office space to gauge practices and technology that might reduce the risk of respiratory virus transmissions.

Cushman & Wakefield is contributing workplace strategy and design protocols. Delos is lending its expertise in air filtration. And Hines, with a global real estate portfolio of more than 500 properties, is drawing on its six decades as a leading developer.

Prior to this announcement, Cushman & Wakefields Recovery Readiness Task Force released a tool kit and protocols for tenants to transition back to work. This includes a 6 feet office concept whose traffic routing is laid out to ensure employees are maintaining social distancing. The elements of this concept include an analysis of current working spaces, workable agreements and rules with employees for personal safety, workstations with personal protective components, training for facility managers, and a certificate stating that these measures are being implemented.

Cushman & Wakefields 6 feet office concept

Along these same lines, Daniel Yudchitz, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP, Senior Design Architect with Leo A Daly in Minneapolis, recently sketched out a space utilization concept that reimagines the office as a mix of remote and centralized work. Dubbed Converge and Disperse, the concept foresees the amount of space that a tenant can own shifting dramatically, with shared or elastic amenities becoming a bigger part of a buildings offering.

Space shared by multiple tenants on each floor could lead to experimentation with new materials and assembly patterns to enable flexibility. And when workers must disperse, buildings could save energy by being divided into zones whose energy and electricity could be shut down.

None of the AEC sources interviewed by BD+C imagined that human interaction in workplaces would come to a halt. Sustaining social distancing, though, will also require discipline that tests the limits of most workers adaptability.

Clients that place a premium on culture will likely always want a robust physical workplace, says Lise Newman, AIA, Vice President and Workplace Practice Director with SmithGroup.

But even she thought open benching was a thing of the past, and that workers henceforth will expect companies to supply them with personal hygiene aids, like wipes to disinfect keyboards, desktops, and unassigned seats.

Changes in workspaces will likely be more behavioral than physical, observes Fred Schmidt, FIIDA, LEED AP, a Principal in Perkins and Wills Chicago office. Associate Principal Michelle Osburn adds that companies need to alter their policies to make it more culturally acceptable for employees to stay home when theyre not feeling well. The argument that you need to be in the office to do your work has been proven false on a stunning scale, she says.

In its white paper on COVID-19 and the impacts to the workplace, Bala Consulting Engineers provides several HVAC solutions to infection control, including UVC lamps installed within an MEP duct system to kill microorganisms in the airstream.

Remote working might have been more prevalent, before the virus hit, than most people knew. Rebecca Milne, LEED GA, Perkins Eastmans Director of Design Strategy, recalls reading a 2016 study that estimated 43% of U.S. employees worked remotely at least occasionally, and that on any given day 50% to 60% of office desks were empty.

Angie Lee, Vice President and Global Sector Leader-Office Workplace for Stantec in Chicago, cites another recent survey that found nearly three-quarters of the companies polled saying they would move at least 5% of their positions to remote working.

WRNS Studio in San Francisco, which has four offices and 200-plus employees, took our business to the cloud years ago, so remote working during the pandemic wasnt such a big deal, says Sam Nunes, the firms Founding Partner. While he doesnt think WRNS would ever go 100% remote, he can envision more online collaboration as employees rotate in and out of his companys offices. A lot of this will be HR-driven, and depend on new protocols for human interaction, he predicted.

James Woolum, AIA, IIDA, a Partner and Interior Architect at ZGF Architects in Los Angeles, speculated that somewhere between 30% and 40% of companies future workforces could be working from home regularly. And if there are 60 employees in an office that once accommodated 100, spreading them out for social distancing will be easier.

Whatever number of workers eventually works from home, the entire digital platform will become a very big deal to facilitate virtual collaboration, says Stantecs Lee. She also thought that Stantec would need to provide its workplace clients with designs that include larger assembly spaces for when companies bring together their associates at different times of the year. Those designs, she says, would require code changes pertaining to exits and life safety, as well as the number of restrooms needed for that space.

Greater attention to hygiene and cleanliness will distinguish the workplace of the future. The short-term impact of the virus will be more personal space. Handwashing will become more of a regimen, says Connor Glass, Principal and Design Director with Perkins Eastman.

While some AEC sources, like Gresham Smiths Weber, say their clients arent quite ready to discuss antimicrobial solutions, the general consensus among AEC sources is that healthier materials will be deemed essential for workplaces. Wellness will be ascendant, says WRNSs Nunes.

Bipolar ionization, an infection control solution proposed by Bala Consulting Engineers, releases positive and negative ions into the airstream to help the buildings filtration system capture contaminants.

Technology will come into play in such areas as advanced cleaning and sanitizing practices, touchless interaction with objects via automation or voice activation, and the use of UV lights, biometrics, and temperature-monitoring devices that prevent germs from wafting into the building.

Air quality is one of the most compromised aspects of a building, says Shona ODea, BEMP, RESET AP, WELL AP, LEED AP, Senior Associate and Building Performance Analyst with DLR Group. Thats particularly true of office buildings, where only 25% of their airflow comes from the outside. But indoor air quality has mostly focused on improving employees cognition and productivity, notes Milne of Perkins Eastman.

The presence of the coronavirus has shifted that conversation to infection control. In a paper on achieving healthier working environments, Stantecs Sustainability Team Leader Rachel Bannon-Godfrey grouped indoor air quality with building conditions assessments, handwashing infrastructure, industrial hygiene, and mental health design support. Her recommendations include adapting building controls and sequencing to accommodate and monitor additional filtration needs.

ALSO SEE: How the coronavirus is impacting the AEC industry

In a subsequent interview with BD+C, Bannon-Godfrey added that clients in general are showing more interest in the WELL Building Standard, which includes ventilation and airflow guidelines, to determine what constitutes a healthier office.

More firms are positioning themselves as wellness champions these days. Casey Lindberg, PhD, Associate AIA, Senior Design Researcher with HKS, spoke of the opportunity presented by the virus outbreak to connect buildings more directly with nature and air quality. Stantec, notes Bannon-Godfrey, sits on the International Well Building Institutes COVID-19 task force, which has been analyzing the pandemic to see where its guidelines might need tweaking.

The workplace, though, wont change overnight. Several AEC sources cautioned that making workplaces healthier will require code amendments, fundamental behavioral changes on the parts of employees and property managers, and clients who can see the long-term benefits of wellness that might include costly MEP and HVAC upgrades in existing buildings.

Thats a lot to expect from Americans who, in cities around the country, ignored social distancing and stay-at-home mandates. But workplace etiquette wont tolerate such a cavalier attitude toward infection control, predicts ZGF Architects Woolum, who sees the future workplace as a convergence of nature, design, and martial law.

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Infection control in office buildings: Preparing for re-occupancy amid the coronavirus - Building Design + Construction

Whether it's a creaky old house or a brand new, state of the art office block, the buildings we live and work in have a big impact on the environment.

The challenge to reduce this footprint is sizable. According to a recent report from the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction, International Energy Agency and the UN Environment Programme, building construction and operations were, globally, responsible for 36% of final energy use in 2018.

Published in December 2019, the Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction also stated that, worldwide, the sector accounted for 39% of energy-related carbon dioxide emissions in 2018.

It's within this context that architects, designers and lawmakers are undertaking efforts to try to boost the sustainability of the built environment.

These efforts to "green" buildings can take many forms, from using sustainable construction materials to deploying energy efficient technologies such as automatic lighting and LED bulbs.

And while new buildings can be designed with sustainability and efficiency in mind, the reality is that a lot of the planet's building stock is old.

The U.K., for example, is home to many in-use buildings that are over 100 years old. While these structures can be aesthetically striking, they can often be troubled by a raft of issues, from poor insulation and sub-standard ventilation to high maintenance costs.

Take the U.K.'s Houses of Parliament, in central London: One section of the estate, Westminster Hall, dates back to 1099. Plans are being developed to restore this sprawling, aged, complex, with lawmakers set to temporarily move out when works eventually begin.

Such a situation begs the question: Is it better to knock things down and start from scratch or take a more rounded view and retrofit and renovate older buildings so that they're cheaper to maintain and better for the environment?

"Definitely, retrofit is the way forward," Cristina Gamboa, CEO of the World Green Building Council, told CNBC's "Sustainable Energy."

"There has to be a sensibility and a consciousness of the limited resources we have in the world," she added.

To date, 28 major cities including London, Tokyo, Sydney, New York and Johannesburg have signed up to the World Green Building Council's Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment.

Gamboa hailed the "leadership" of these cities, stating that they were "enacting net zero carbon buildings policies but also putting out incentives for industry to transform faster."

While retrofitting and ambitious pledges may be a useful way of boosting the performance of buildings, will we ever be able to build large-scale developments without energy intensive materials such as cement?

"So, I think the answer is no," Gamboa said. "We cannot build without it, right. There has to be solutions that address climate, people and different geographies around the world."

Read more:
The planet has a problem with buildings: Here's how smart ideas, tech and design can change that - CNBC

Eight stories is a lot for wood; Vanessa Sturgeon and Bob Thompson predict a V-shaped recovery.

Sturgeon Development Partners (SDP) plans to build one of the tallest cross-laminated timber (CLT) buildings in the western United States in an opportunity zone on Southeast Grand Avenue between Ash and Pine Streets.

Called the Flatworks Building, and based at 234-236 S.E. Grand Ave., groundbreaking is set for the end of 2020, with completion in the second quarter of 2022. LMC Construction of Tualatin will be the contractor. The 130,000-square-foot speculative office building will be eight stories tall and shows the confidence that SDP's president, Vanessa Sturgeon, has in the Portland economy despite the most significant economic depression since the 1930s (see sidebar).

"We are confident in Portland's future to attract more businesses and talent to the region," said Sturgeon, who is the granddaughter of developer Tom Moyer and one of the forces behind Fox Tower and Park Avenue West.

"These have been challenging times for our city, state and country amid the coronavirus, but we will emerge from this stronger. SDP is investing now, because we believe Portland's commercial real estate industry will continue growing, and that our city's economic future is bright."

Flatworks will use Mass Plywood Panels, which are not made in the same crisscross pattern as cross-laminated timber. The building's design shows it will have an eco-roof and be green building certified, as well as having 42 parking spaces and 45 bike parking spaces. The current tallest CLT building in Portland us Carbon12 on Northeast Fremont Street, which is 85 feet tall.

At the time the design was submitted to the Bureau of Development Services, architect Bob Thompson of TVA Architects commented on the building's retro design of tall windows and a mix of precast concrete cladding and brick.

"The building will honor and respect the character and the massing the overall look and feel of the historic buildings that make up the Grand Avenue Historic District." The architect will make its design presentation to the city's Historic Land Use Commission on June 1.

Thompson said, "Oregon and the Pacific Northwest are driven by the timber industry which has allowed us to lead the nation in the continuous evolution of wood-framed buildings," said Thompson. "Portland's inner southeast industrial district over the coming decade will emerge as one of the fastest-growing neighborhoods supporting new creative office space, galleries, restaurants and housing. The views back to the city and the West Hills are unparalleled, along with its connection to light rail and our downtown core."

Thompson is optimistic about the local economy, saying the fundamentals are good and that as soon as the coronavirus restrictions are lifted, activity will rebound. The recovery will be V-shaped rather than U- or L-shaped.

Flatworks will take a year to design, but some of that work will overlap with construction drawing and groundbreaking, making it three year's work executed in two. Thompson is sure it will open in early 2022, and there will be demand for office space.

"The economy should be back up and running in a pretty big way. We're being pretty proactive about making sure that there is available office space back out on the market."

"I do think one of the best things that Oregon's done, though, is keeping the construction industry open during this period of time. It's reinforcing the economy better than a lot of states have that it's done, those that put a halt to construction. We had a number of projects in Washington that went on hold when Governor Inslee rolled construction and manufacturing into a part of their non-essential work. He's since watched what's happened in Oregon and how successful Kate Brown's program has been, and they've reopened construction now and manufacturing, which is a real positive for their economy."

He is optimistic TVA can survive on a mixture of private and publicly funded work. The firm made it through the last recession thanks to private-sector work such as the new headquarters project for Nike over in Shanghai, China, the Phil Knight-funded Matthew Knight Arena at the University of Oregon, and the Park Avenue West tower next to Nordstrom.

"They were all large projects which kept our staff in place, all well-funded projects, too, which really helped us navigate through the Great Recession. Now we're very busy in the health care area and the multifamily housing."

He points out that Park Avenue West was just a hole in the ground for five years because "it was privately funded by Mr. Moyer (Vanessa Sturgeon's grandfather). Then when they went out to the lending markets, that's when the economy obviously started to decline, in 2008, 2009."

This downturn is different.

"That recession was all economically driven. There was a lot of long term uncertainty. This (coronavirus slowdown) is a problem independent of the economy. The economy at heart is still strong. Once they find a vaccine, hopefully, the recovery time will be quite a bit shorter."

Thompson told the Business Tribune that it has been interesting seeing his team of 50 working from home and communicating well virtually.

"It's going a lot better than what I ever anticipated. I miss the collaboration or the ability to more fluidly connect with people versus like a Zoom meeting."

TVA has 30 projects on the go. Being project-based means staff has some security two or three years ahead. "Construction is up and running still, which is a blessing. We should be thankful.

Thompson has a wide-angle view of the coronavirus pandemic.

"I'm 65, and back in the late 1960s, there was the Hong Kong flu, and it killed every bit as many people as this one."

He points out that the Woodstock music festival, which pulled together 400,000 people in a field, was in the summer of 1969 right after the Hong Kong flu, which then spiked in the winter of 1969.

"We didn't have social media and the cable networks. It was pretty much left up to the medical professions and the scientists, and it wasn't politicized. It just kind of happened and the economy was never closed. I'm not a proponent for that. It's just interesting."

Sturgeon told the Business Tribune that opportunity zones caused a stir when they were first announced.

"They caused a lot of interest at the beginning. The COVID crisis has shut down the economy for the moment, but we raised a lot of money for the fund pre-COVID. This project has been in the works for quite some time."

The investors are still keen.

"We haven't heard from anyone that's getting cold feet. The timing is solid because the economy should be recovered by the time we are opening (in 2022)."

Speaking about construction in Portland in general, Sturgeon said, "I think the projects that have already started are going to continue. The question is whether people are going to continue to build speculative office and retail projects."

The big question is how the market for office and retail space will change. She expects some retail bankruptcies. And the trend for collaborative workspaces no cubicles, long tables and hot-desking with people wearing headphones is now dying.

"I think people are thinking about what if this happens again, can we weather the storm effectively? How can we be compliant with social distancing? It costs a lot of money to shut down. Right now, our feeling is that we need to build better stuff. So (that means) creating a workspace that really draws attention and fits with their values. We're talking about the tallest cross-laminated timber office building in the West."

Sturgeon says that kind of project will attract companies who value sustainability, the comforting feeling of wood, and the walkability of offices with retail spaces on their ground floor.

"You have to really build something that speaks to people. Standard office space is potentially going to be sitting for quite some time."

She's a big fan of TVA Architects. "We have always felt that Bob's architecture stands the test of time."

Asked what could jeopardize the project in the next two years, she recalled a talk by Ben Bernanke, former Chairman of the Federal Reserve, gave to the Brookings Institution saying that the coronavirus recession is not going to be anywhere near like the Great Depression.

"Frankly, my biggest worry is how it's going to impact people who were already in a tenuous financial position. So, the homeless or those living on the brink of homelessness. I think that the economy is going to rebound and it's not going to be a two-year problem. It's going to be a significant issue for the next several months or year, but Portland has a very strong and stable economy, we don't overbuild. Our growth is that steady, and I don't see the virus changing that."

Asked whether local officials have done a good job so far, she said she didn't know.

"The state officials are in a very tough spot. They're prognosticating and doing their best to balance reopening the economy with keeping people safe and healthy. That's really impossible. So, there's definitely going to be some (policy) fixes later."

SDP also has a project at Thurman and Northwest 17th, and she still expects it to open on time in early July. It's another speculative project, a machine shop being converted into creative office space, and it does not have any tenants yet. "For a really well-done office project, I don't worry."

She sees Portland's growth as unstoppable by any recession.

"I look at Portland as an organic growth area. There are a lot of tech that our opening offshoot offices here, but we also have a lot of organic growth from local companies."

Joseph GallivanReporter, The Business Tribune971-204-7874This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and InstagramSubscribe to our E-News

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Read more:
Sturgeon's Flatworks will be one of the tallest cross-laminated timber towers in the west - Portland Tribune

Office usage in Dallas-Fort Worth and Denver is more varied, and it shows in the stats, according to CoStar.

"The Dallas-FW office vacancy rate is the least impacted relative to the major energy markets, only rising from 18% currently to 19% in the worst-case scenario. Denver, with the lowest overall 4&5-Star vacancy rate among these markets, could see a slight rise in vacancies of 2.5 percentage points in the worst-case scenario but would still retain the tightest vacancy rate across the four metros."

Comparing not-so-lil-ol' Oklahoma City, population 655,057, to Houston, population 2.3 million, isn't quite as crazy as it seems when the historic-economic kinship of the oil business is taken into consideration. Plus we should probably get ready for more comparisons with bigger cities, and more caveats. In case you missed it, Oklahoma City is now the 25th largest city in the United States, up six spots since 2010, according to the Census Bureau.

Things change. Population isn't everything. Tulsa used to be known as the Oil Capital of the World, and CoStar didn't even look that direction.

(Story continued below...)

Email Real Estate Editor Richard Mize at rmize@oklahoman.com.

See the article here:
Not to be crude, but Oklahoma City and Houston, we have a problem - Oklahoman.com