Adaptive reuse of Sears store into mixed-use housing with ground-floor Target retail

Adaptive reuse of a Sears store becomes luxury mixed-use housing

6 Corners Lofts at 4714 W Irving Park Road, Chicago, Ill., opened in March of 2024 as a 394,000-sf adaptive reuse project born out of a former Sears store.

Adaptive Reuse

Empty mall to be converted to UCLA Research Park

UCLA recently acquired a former mall that it will convert into the UCLA Research Park that will house the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy at UCLA and the UCLA Center for Quantum Science and Engineering, as well as programs across other disciplines. The 700,000-sf property, formerly the Westside Pavilion shopping mall, is two miles from the university’s main Westwood campus. Google, which previously leased part of the property, helped enable and support UCLA’s acquisition.

Smart Buildings

A Swiss startup devises an intelligent photovoltaic façade that tracks and moves with the sun

Zurich Soft Robotics says Solskin can reduce building energy consumption by up to 80% while producing up to 40% more electricity than comparable façade systems.

Urban Planning

‘Flowing’ design emphasizes interaction at Bellevue, Wash., development

The three-tower 1,030,000-sf office and retail development designed by Graphite Design Group in collaboration with Compton Design Office for Vulcan Real Estate is attracting some of the world’s largest names in tech and hospitality.

Retail Centers

With the advent of the internet and online shopping, retail centers need to be more compelling than ever to draw people away from their computers and into physical stores. Design can capture the interest of potential shoppers, and pay off in a big way for business owners.

Projects | Mar 2, 2022

Manufacturing plant gets second life as a mixed-use development

Wire Park, a mixed-use development being built near Athens, Ga., will feature 130 residential units plus 225,000 square feet of commercial, office, and retail space. About an hour east of downtown Atlanta, the 66-acre development also will boast expansive public greenspace.

Urban Planning | Feb 11, 2022

6 ways to breathe life into mixed-use spaces

To activate mixed-use spaces and realize their fullest potential, project teams should aim to create a sense of community and pay homage to the local history.

Amazon Style retail store concept, Amazon redefines the fashion store

Retail Centers | Jan 31, 2022

Amazon Style: Amazon’s latest innovative physical shopping experience

In January, Amazon unveiled plans to build a physical fashion store concept, dubbed Amazon Style, in Los Angeles. The e-commerce giant says the store will offer “together the best of shopping on Amazon–great prices, selection, and convenience–with an all new shopping experience built to inspire.”

Advances and Challenges in Improving Indoor Air Quality HorizonTV

Coronavirus | Jan 20, 2022

Advances and challenges in improving indoor air quality in commercial buildings

Michael Dreidger, CEO of IAQ tech startup Airsset speaks with BD+C's John Caulfield about how building owners and property managers can improve their buildings' air quality.

Retail Centers | GBBN | Jan 13, 2022

6 strategies for giving new life to ghost retail buildings

There is a tremendous opportunity to repurposing these “ghost stores” from taking advantage of the embodied carbon of the site to increased economic incentive for communities.

Village at Prasada power center will be on 100 acres in Surprise, Ariz. Images: Suite 6 Architecture and Upward Architects

Retail Centers | Jan 2, 2022

A national developer is betting on a retail rebound

A 700,000-sf power center near Phoenix is one of SimonCRE’s developments nationwide.

Retail Centers | Nov 28, 2021

Robotic bar opens in Amsterdam

The venue offers a contact-free experience.

Papa Johns new restaurant design exterior

Retail Centers | Nov 16, 2021

New Papa Johns restaurant design will streamline the customer experience

The restaurant redesign brings with it a new logo and brand identity.

The long-delayed American Dream retail/entertainment center in East Rutherford, N.J., was finished in December 2020, in the middle of the pandemic. Photo: Chris Lo Bue Photography

Giants 400 | Oct 22, 2021

2021 Retail Giants: Top architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. retail building sector

Gensler, CallisonRTKL, Kimley-Horn, and Whiting-Turner top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest retail sector architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in the 2021 Giants 400 Report.