2015 Birmingham IDIE Awards

WBA took home awards for both Shaeffer Eye Center and the Radella Residence at the biennial IDIE Awards at the newly renovated Florentine Building.

Shaeffer Eye Center

• Retail Award

As a provider of advanced eye care in the State of Alabama, the new flagship Schaeffer Eye Center in Hoover tangibly translates the pillars of the Schaeffer Eye Center Experience – science, style and service – through its crisp, forward-thinking interior design. Originally the home of a furniture showroom, the new clinic was transformed through a complete gutting of the 10,000-square-foot first floor.

Radella Residence

• Residential Award

 A tree-lined sandy pathway along Rose Walk leads to this beachside home in Seaside, Florida, a community renowned for its innovative and elegant approach to capturing the character of traditional beachside towns. This 1,962-square-foot house is situated between the pedestrian-only Rose Walk path and Robert’s Way. The importance of this pedestrian path on one side, along with the desire for vehicular access on the other side, drove the design to essentially have two fronts, with two entry porches and two front doors.

2014 AIA Alabama Awards

WBA took home several awards at the 2014 AIA Alabama awards in categories ranging from residential to institutional. 

Mountain Brook Municipal Complex

• Institutional Merit Award
• Honor Award for Designing with Brick

Nestled among existing oak trees, the new Mountain Brook Municipal Complex occupies the same site as the original Mountain Brook City Hall built in 1967. Designed as the new home for the community’s city council, mayor’s office, city manager and fire and police departments, the 53,000-square-foot complex provides much needed additional space and facility upgrades – including a 60-space, underground parking deck – while complementing the character and design elements, such as red brick with limestone trim and Tudor-style details, of the community village where is sits.

North Engineering Research Center

• Top Block Award

Situated at the northwest corner of the Science and Engineering Complex at The University of Alabama, the $58 million North Engineering Research Center provides approximately 207,000-square-feet of research and instructional laboratories, research support amenities, faculty offices, graduate student workstations, conference/meeting facilities and collaboration spaces. With more than 51 separate research laboratories to support specialized research disciplines, this building also supports the campus with a centralized 7,800-square-foot Cleanroom facility which meets ISO 5, 6 and 7 Cleanliness Classifications. Overall, the building was designed to create flexible research environments that can grow and change over time – accommodating new research tools and equipment without additional investment or major disruptions of ongoing operations.

Redella Residence

• Residential Merit Award

The Redella Residence is located on Robert’s Way in the new urbanism development of Seaside, Florida, a community renown for its innovative and elegant approach to capturing the character of traditional beachside towns. The site for the 2,000 square foot house backs up to Rose Walk, a tree-lined sand pathway that is a primary route for pedestrian traffic from the residential streets into downtown Seaside.  The importance of Rose Walk and the necessity to have a front door on the street side of Robert’s Way drove the design to essentially have two entry porches and two front doors, generating a symmetrical layout with a central corridor that connects both entries on the first floor. A three story spiral stair pierces through the rooftop connecting the two floors of living space with an expansive rooftop terrace and is a focal point to both the interior spaces and the Robert’s Way façade. 

UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center

• Institutional Honor Award

This dramatic transformation of the dated Comprehensive Cancer Center is a key step in translating medical research into clinically based programs aimed at improving cancer prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. In addition to providing updated facilities, a key goal of the renovation was to foster collaboration amongst the researchers. A five-story, sky-lit atrium serves as the new heart of the building with offices clustered around this central collaborative area. The typical maze of corridors and labs commonly found in older research buildings was converted into new research spaces organized around the dynamic atrium core. The renovation also redefined the identity of the building on campus with a new, two-story lobby and revitalized exterior presence serving as the grand entrance and providing connection to the adjacent medical center’s pedestrian concourse.

2013 AIA birmingham Awards →

WBA was honored to take home a merit award for our work on Shades Valley YMCA and an honor award for Redella Residence.

Shades Valley YMCA

• Merit Award

This YMCA project actually began four years before construction broke ground with a community fundraising campaign to help garner support for the renovation of the 50-year-old building. The YMCA wanted to create a more user-friendly and family-friendly space while continuing its service to the community during construction – never closing its doors during the nine-month process. The revitalized facility now features a welcoming entrance, inviting Members into the space which was completely reorganized to maximize existing square feet and optimize circulation. An additional 4,000-square-feet was added to make room for new exercise studios, free-weight areas, a technology center and a new pool complete with water slides and a splash park. YMCA Members now enjoy a vibrant, energetic environment awash with abundant natural light.

Redella Residence

• Honor Award

This private residence located in the renowned community of Seaside, Florida perfectly captures the essence of a traditional beach town. Generous living spaces are kept light and airy with the use of natural light, a neutral color palette and an open-concept floor plan. Site limitations created the need for two main entries to the 2,000-square-foot home so a symmetrical layout with a central corridor connects both entries and is punctuated with a dramatic, three-story spiral staircase. The staircase sits at the heart of the home and vertically connects both interior floors to the expansive third-story, rooftop terrace which beckons you with its comfortable seating areas and panoramic ocean views.