Though the winter winds are bitter and the economy smells like a month-old Quik Trip Taquito, we remain optimistic here at el dorado inc. Our staff is rested and fit after a long holiday break. We have two municipal / industrial projects in the works, among many others. Our fridge is clean. We’re ready to go.

We were honored to accept this years Firm of the Year Award from AIA Kansas City at the annual Holiday Party. In a design town like Kansas City has become in the past decade, this is a very big deal for us. And while we’re self-congratulating, we’ll go ahead and mention that we grabbed our fair share of awards this year, including three AIA Central States Awards and a National Historic Preservation Award. We will do our very best in 2009 to humbly maintain the design mojo that got us this far.

 

We’re excited about our latest industrial project: the new Glass Recycling facility for the Boulevard Brewing Company. Boulevard has partnered up with Owens Corning on the project, and will provide them with the raw material for their fiberglass insulation operation. Our design will leverage the efficient spanning capabilities of a pre-engineered building system to simultaneously provide column-free interior bays, and an expansive sheltered exterior area. The facility should be operational this summer.

 

We look forward to groundbreaking in a couple weeks for our latest industrial project: the KCPD Vehicle Processing Facility in Northeast Kansas City. The VPF will allow for the controlled retrieval and processing of evidence found in cars and trucks involved in crimes. Aside from 8 evidence-gathering bays, the project includes a laboratory, office space, and sheltered exterior storage for an additional four vehicles. The VPF should be complete by October first, and is on track to achieve LEED Silver certification.

 

Competition was fierce at the first annual inter-eldo holiday party and chili cookoff. Five el doradans sparked up their crock-pots, but in the end only Chili the Kid (AKA Steve Salzer) remained standing. This sparked some controversy, as Steve did not actually “self-fabricate” his chili, choosing instead to “outsource” its production to his mother-in-law. He survived the challenge, however, because the second place finisher (Brady Neely) could not prove the provenance of whatever meat was in his entry (entitled Awesome Possum).

 

eldo has completed its first teaching gig: a design studio at Washington University in St. Louis. David Dowell (a Wash U grad) headed up the operation, engaging thirteen students in a series of challenging, pragmatic projects: a bus shelter, a pre-engineered structure and a final eight-week design study centered on the problematic I-635 Corridor in downtown Kansas City. It felt great to wander the academic halls again, and we look forward to our next two teaching gigs: a spring semester design studio at the University of Kansas and a summer graduate studio at Lawrence Technological University in Detroit.

 

Meet Jenn Whiteford--that’s her there on the left. Jenn is a 2006 graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute, and she has signed on as el dorado’s “Official Public Interface Liaison”. (Not to be confused with our “Public Liaison Interface Official”—a totally different position.) In addition to being a kind-hearted, tambourine-playing, tree-loving vegetarian, Jenn is also smart, funny, well organized and will help keep the global el dorado running smoothly and efficiently.

 

It appears that athletic drug testing is a recession-proof market. Starting in early January, we’ll start work on an expansion for the National Center of Drug Free Sport. Located just South of the Crossroads in Kansas City, the project will complete the build out of the client’s 12,000 square foot facility. In addition to the architectural design, eldo will fabricate all of the furniture systems on the project. (Nota Bene: the project will be our first to pursue Art through Architecture Certification—a initiative of the Charlotte Street Foundation to incentivize architects and clients to incorporate artwork by local artists into their architectural projects. More information on the AtA website.) 

 

We just finished fabrication on a custom gate for the Aron / Levin pool house project. Eventually, it will be galvanized and infilled with Ipe, but we wanted to mock it up in our shop to make sure it closed properly (automatically closing gates are a code requirement for gates in Fairway, Kansas.) Shown on the left is the steel frame with the self-closing spring assembly, with our own Chris Burk standing in as human ballast. For more info on the Aron / Levin project, check it out “on the boards.”