Community Corner

Old Studio City Office Building Gets New Look; Whatcha Think?

The developer and architects were inspired by the revitalization of the nearby L.A. River.

What do you think of the newly remodeled office building at Coldwater Canyon Avenue and Valleyheart Drive?

The architects behind the $700,000 facelift, SRK, believe they've turned a toad into a prince.

"Upon first inspection, our thoughts were to just tear down the building. But the more holistically we looked at the project, the more we felt that the building’s original bones should be retained," said Brian Kite, managing principal, in a press release.

The 1950s-era building now called The Waterfront is right on the $3.6 million North Valleyheart Riverwalk Greenway, scheduled to open June 21. It was the revitalization of the river that prompted the architects to consider revitalizing the structure, which  Maureen Shapiro, president of the manufacturing firm and the developer, called a "nondescript, unattractive building." 

So here's what was done to the ugly duckling: 

  • Bringing the building into current seismic compliance
  • Adding a new multi-tenant lobby
  • Creating four separate leasable areas, restrooms, security, mechanical, plumbing and new electrical service
  • Exterior given a modern look all around
  • Horizontal ship lap siding was deployed in alternating four, six and eight inch vertical patterns, accented by dark metal panels over building entries and flush corner windows on the northwest corner
  • Glazing was expressed in a reflective “scale-less” window wall system to give a new high tech look to the facade
  • Behind the building is a walkway, gardens, and benches, which extend between Coldwater Canyon Avenue and Fulton Avenue in Studio City and Sherman Oaks

SO, WHATCHA THINK? DOES MODERN WORK THERE? MISS THE MID-CENTURY MODERN? TELL US IN THE COMMENTS:


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