Nate England Joins SFA/PDT Architects

I am happy to announce that I have joined SFA/PDT Architects in Cincinnati, Ohio. This is a great opportunity to work with with some very talented and dedicated professionals, and to reunite with some of my former Miami University classmates. Unfortunately, the logistics of joining a new company and moving to a new city were the reasons behind the recent lack of new projects and posts on the website. Now that I have settled in, I am looking forward to continuing to post projects, reviews, interviews, and whatever else is of interest in the design and architecture community.
Of course, this means that all architectural services formerly offered by Nate England Design will now be offered exclusively through SFA/PDT. Though, I am still happy to answer any questions regarding my previous projects and experience. I will continue to offer freelance graphics and design services that are unrelated to the architecture and construction industry.

Kuefu Jima Pavilion: D3 Natural Systems 2010 Competition

The Kuefu Jima pavilion is a project that I had been thinking about since I visited the area last year. The Kiese Islands are a collection of three small islands half way between the Okinawan mainland and the Kerama Island group. It is made of of three small islands, Nagannu Jima is a long narrow island with a large natural area, Kamiyama Jima is made up of two small rises and tidal flats, and Kuefu Jima which is a small narrow sand bar that is about 100 meters long. The area has absolutely stunning natural beauty, and is a great location for snorkeling, diving, fishing, and other water sports. In the winter months humpback wales pass through the area.












Unfortunately, this beauty is attracting more and more locals and tourists to the area causing increasing environmental damage. While it would be ideal to construct nothing at all, the impact of these visitor is making that less and less possible. My solution creates a building with the absolute minimum environmental impact. The dock will help prevent boaters from throwing anchor in the delicate coral and wading ashore. The deck encourages people to stay off of the delicate natural grasses and shrubs which hold this fragile island together. It also creates a focal point for trash collection, which is absolutely vital to clean up the large amount of trash that washed up from Okinawa's densely populated coast. Please have a closer look at the presentation boards to see additional details about the project.












This project seemed to fit in perfectly with D3 Natural Systems annual competition, and the design of the pavillion was fleshed out with the competetion in mind. Special consideration was taken into water collection, electricity usage, and environmental impact. Local building traditions and methods were a key component of this design, and many uniquely Okinawan elements can be seen in its final design. It is important to note that though only a schematic design, every care was taking to ensure that this is a project that could actually be constructed and maintained as it was envisioned. This is a realistic solution for a real-world problem.











The images were created through a combination of photo montage, digital mat painting, and 3-D models. All of the base photos were taken locally, mostly by myself, in order to show off the natural beauty of the area. As you can see, this process produces great results that allows everyone to see the design intent. The more I work with this process, the more comfortable and refined it has become, allowing for great looking results in a fraction of the time of traditional renderings.









I would like to especially thank Alicia Turner and Chris Gavin for their great contributions to this project. Alicia provided the LEED analysis, with the final result being that the project could be submitted for LEED Platinum status, the highest level attainable under the LEED Standards. Chris helped with the write ups, streamlining of ideas, and product research. Their help was invaluable.

Project Snapshot: Caterpillar Parking Deck

This is a great little project that I worked on with Jim Matarelli while I was with PSA Dewberry. This project is located next to the Caterpillar World Headquarters and the proposed Cat Visitors Center and Lakeview Museum in downtown Peoria, IL. The schematic design phase of this project had a very tight schedule and budget, so it was necessary to come up with quality images and concepts quickly. We came up with 5 or 6 proposals for the re-skinning of the existing parking deck and I then created them in SketchUp.


















Then, one option was chosen and I fleshed it out using Bentley and Photoshop. This method gave great results considering the short amount of time that the budget allowed. The museum has not been given the green light yet, and the future of this project is reliant on that decision.

Project Snapshot: Habitat for Humanity ReStore

The design of the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Peoria, Illlinois was a small volunteer project that Evan Spirrison and I worked on. The company was moving from the back of the building it rented into the front. They wanted a simple and cheap way of making the exterior of their storefront and display area to stand out. On the exterior I proposed striped awnings over the windows, light sconces, signage, and photo montages (these were very important to the folks at the ReStore at the time). On the interior, we proposed removing the existing carpet to expose the original intricate tile work underneath, a wall that showed the varying stages of house construction, and additional Habitat for Humanity signage.



















Ultimately, the changes we proposed for the interior were carried out. The canopy and central signage on the front of the building was built as well. However, the sconces and photo-montages have yet to be installed. Nevertheless, it was a fun project for a good cause.