| The Starbucks within the future Redlands Transit Village is located within a revitalized portion of Downtown Redlands, situated on the Southeast corner of Eureka Street and Stuart Avenue. The site and surrounding areas were home to historic Chinatown and Sonora Village, which were communities comprised of dwellings and small service shops for migrant workers housed within the Redlands community early in the 20th century. The contributions of these workers helped shape the future of the citrus industry, necessitating the construction of the many packing houses and support structures for that era, informed the inspiration of the design of this project.
The program and scope are the single-story 2,200 SF coffee shop building, sitework and associated infrastructure improvements within the immediate vicinity of the site.
Designing a relatively small building, within the context of many larger buildings in the same vicinity on a very prominent site - without it looking like a bigger version of those buildings, was the single largest challenge of the project. The building achieves identity without being contrived while remaining contextually relevant. A secondary challenge was complying with the conflicting FEMA elevation requirements along with the city’s specific plan that requires the buildings to be within 10-feet of the public sidewalk. This requirement presents special access challenges while maintaining a positive pedestrian experience.
The solution is an articulated butterfly roof structure, in conjunction with specific and purposeful detailing that smartly transitions from one material to another while maintaining the integrity and continuity of the aesthetic goals of the Redlands Packing House District. The butterfly roof structure is authentic and expressive both externally and internally, and is carried through the front to back as no side of this building is “back-of-house”, which required articulation of each elevation.
The use of four different primary materials (rustic brick veneer, honed masonry veneer, Corten steel panels, dark bronze/black fabrications) is intended to provide contrast and a dichotomy of juxtaposed colors and visual interest while harkening to the area’s agrarian roots.
The drought-tolerant landscaping and sustainable hardscape features are contextual, inviting, and pragmatic, and contribute to the overall solution and integration of the building with site, and site to the ongoing development of this revitalized downtown area.
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