The MKT mixed-use development is a truly Houstonian take on adaptive reuse, with a tilt wall industrial office park. Located in the chic and rapidly upscaling neighborhood of Houston Heights, this industrial, 1970s-era industrial remnant is being transformed: the buildings’ concrete shells remain, but are bisected by pathways that seem to surgically remove the existing concrete and expose the steel girders beneath, forming plazas framed by the exposed steel structure. The tenants of the five re-fabricated buildings are a mix of office tenants, restaurants, breweries, bike shops, and other bespoke retail outlets. The existing buildings are currently at loading dock height; SWA developed an intricate system for vertical circulation that takes guests from the parking area through green space-filled plazas, up nearly four feet to a catwalk shopping experience. Several passive and interactive features connect the site to the greenway bike trail that borders its northern edge. While the architecture capitalizes on existing buildings, the landscape employs reused sheet pile walls, recycled concrete, and rain gardens to create a truly sustainable project.
East Quarter Mixed-Use
Two neighborhoods that abut the Downtown Dallas Central Business District have been disconnected for years by derelict blocks and buildings. The East Quarter Mixed-Use development establishes a walkable retail, dining, and entertainment connection between the thriving Deep Ellum Farmer’s Market and highly programmed Arts District. The project included the pres...
Williams Square
For decades, Williams Square has been the walkable “living room” for Irving, Texas’s Las Colinas community. The plaza’s iconic bronze mustang sculptures, designed by artist Robert Glen, are among the state’s most iconic landscape features, speaking to the state’s identity and history.
SWA’s engagement with the plaza is longstanding, dating back to the 1...
Poly Zhuhai
Poly Zhuhai, a large mixed-use development, is located at the central axis of Hengqin Island, a transformed landfill site near Macao. The site is south of the small Hengqin Mountain, facing a civic sports park on the other side.
The main office tower has a large, square footprint, elevated six to seven meters above the street level, with retail programs...
La Plaza Cultura Village
Located within El Pueblo, the birthplace of Los Angeles, La Plaza Cultura Village is a mixed-use, transit-oriented development totaling 425,000 square feet of retail, apartments (20 percent of which are low income units), cultural facilities, and public open space. Two large, surface parking lots have been transformed into a vibrant community that builds upon ...