ST. PAUL, Minn. – A gifted young Minnesota architect has been honored for her innovative ideas on mixed-use development. Jessica Vogel is one of two first place winners of the prestigious St. Paul Prize from the St. Paul chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).
The prize is open annually to AIA Minnesota Associate members with less than seven years of post-graduation experience. Vogel, who works for Minneapolis firm Ellerbe Becket, shared top honors this year with Jennifer Graham-Charnewski of Julie Snow Architects. Vogel also won the competition in 2003 and received an Honorable Mention in 2004.
This year’s competition was part of an urban renewal effort for Kutzky Park, one of the historic central core neighborhoods in Rochester, Minn. Participants were asked to design a mixed-use building(s) incorporating retail, commercial office and residential spaces.
“Jessica solved the problem in a very context-appropriate way,” wrote the jury, “masterfully incorporating sustainable design practices to the entire site, including the use of green roofs.”
Vogel felt context would be an important issue because the mixed-use development will serve as a gateway to the 100-year-old neighborhood. “I made a conscious decision to incorporate familiar elements, materials such as brick, stone and glass.”
She placed retail establishments along the first floor, choosing options such as an extended-hour coffee shop/wine bar, a bakery and a dry cleaner. Residential units located above the retail outlets incorporate an exterior wood screen that allows residents to see out but preserves their privacy from passersby. “I was trying to be sensitive to the neighborhood and people who would realistically use the development,” Vogel said.”
The Kutzky Park renewal effort could turn into a real project. Vogel has agreed to stay involved as neighborhood officials attempt to get the area re-zoned for mixed use and begin to talk with potential developers.
For Vogel, the Kutzky Park competition is a departure from the size and scale of projects she normally works on at Ellerbe Becket. She currently is part of a team designing a new multi-story bed tower at St. Paul’s Regions Hospital.
A Minnesota native, Vogel has worked in Ellerbe Becket’s Minneapolis office since April 2002. She also interned in the firm’s Kansas City office in 2000-2001 while finishing her bachelor’s degree in architecture at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. After graduation, she attended the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.
Her co-winning design earned an $800 cash prize and a year’s membership in the St. Paul AIA. Jurors included AIA St. Paul President Tim Griffin, AIA; First Homes representative Chris Flood, Imagine Kutzky’s Andy Masterpole, ASLA; and AIA St. Paul Past-President Jose Rivas, AIA.
An innovator since its founding in 1909, Ellerbe Becket is a leader in architecture, interiors, engineering and the construction industry with office locations worldwide.
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