The Big Picture by Val Glitsch, FAIA
Project Tellepsen Family Downtown YMCA, Houston Client Greater YMCA of Houston Architect Kirksey Architecture Design team Steve Durham, AIA; Scott Cutlip, AIA; Milton Pyron, AIA; Bob Inaba, AIA; Brian Malarkey, FAIA; Jeffrey Chapman, AIA; Kapil Upadhyaya Contractor Tellepsen Builders Consultants The Mathis Group (manager); Haynes Whaley Associates (structural); CobbFendley (civil); Pieper-Houston Electric (electrical); Raven Mechanical (plumbing); JEAcoustics (acoustics/noise vibration control); Electrical Tech Services (sounds system/av/data); Graves Mechanical (hvac); Watts Pool Company (pool); Lauren Griffith Associates (landscape); Babendure Wheat Creative (graphic design) Photographer Aker Imaging, Thomas McConnell
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n 2008 the YMCA of Greater Houston announced the imminent replacement of Kenneth Franzheim’s Italian Renaissance-inspired ten-story edifice that had provided classrooms, exercise facilities, and 132 single-room residential units since 1941. Aspiring to move in a more “family-friendly” direction, the organization stated the primary goal of the new 115,000-sf facility would be to assume a stronger community presence in downtown Houston. At the south end of downtown, the Tellepsen Family YMCA — sited strategically for maximum visibility and natural light — opens to the street with a two-story porch and lobby topped by three floors of activities, all with views to-and-fro downtown. Named in honor of the Tellepsen Family’s long history of service, construction, and philanthropy to both Houston and the YMCA, the new building sits less than two blocks away from the previous location. The LEED Gold-Certified facility, designed by Kirksey Architects, was a project ten years in discussion. Having designed four earlier one-story suburban Y facilities, Kirksey’s design team participated in a two-firm invited competition to secure the contract for this five-level urban Y project. Organizational clarity, coupled with sustainable materials and strate-
7/8 2012
Texas Architect 51