A four-story industrial building along a major corridor road in North Oakland, Pittsburgh was originally a car dealership, with a show room on the first floor, a garage on the lower level, and a freight elevator serving all floors that was capable of transporting the cars. After remaining vacant for a number of years, plans were put in place to transform the impressive building into a mixed-use building. The lower floor is now a fitness/sports facility, the first floor is a children’s amusement center, and the top two floors have been converted into twelve apartments.
Floor heights of up to 16 feet, a building depth of 115 feet, and an existing elevator the size of a medium room all required creative solutions. Code compliance and egress were challenging within the building’s layout, while the floor heights created opportunity for dynamic light and space. The final product is lively, with commercial and residential tenants combining to energize the building and neighborhood.