NEWS + INSIGHTS

The San Francisco Planning Commission recently approved 1721 15th Street, bringing 50 affordable for-sale homes to the City of San Francisco.

Grant Chang sits with Pacific Business News reporter Stephanie Salmons to discuss his path to becoming an architect, the evolution of Lowney Architecture's impact in Hawaii and what's spurring the firm's growth. 

Lowney Architecture's Hawaii office has experienced significant growth in 2022. Read more about our recent hires and what they bring to the team.

The new development delivers housing and on-site supportive services to formerly unsheltered populations and households at or below 60% AMI (area median income). Calabazas Community Apartments is the first supportive housing complex in the City of Santa Clara.

The hospitality industry is gearing up for a renaissance, and strategic designs and layouts are critical to attract guests and encourage future revisits. Janice Li and Noe Pegarido help shed light on how hotel spaces can evolve at any phase of a hotel property’s development.

In preparation of kicking off Affordable Housing Week, last Friday our team welcomed a sold-out project tour of the Mayfair Affordable Homes Development in El Cerrito, CA with AIA East Bay.

Congratulations to Senior Project Designer, Tim Sloat for being recognized as a Retail Influencer by GlobeSt.com! Tim’s talent for creative problem-solving and novel urban design strategies have positioned him as a valuable resource for confronting challenges facing the rapidly evolving retail landscape.

Last week, Ken Lowney and Nick Gomez represented the firm in San Antonio, TX at MBI's 2022 World of Modular conference. With two appointments, two presentations, and two awards, Lowney Architecture's reputation as an experienced modular architecture firm was again, reinforced.

The Jefferson Elementary School District in Daly City received the 2022 All-Electric Leader Award from Peninsula Clean Energy for Outstanding Commercial Project for a 50,500-square-foot project that is the first workforce housing campus for grades K-8 in California.

To satisfy growing stocking and product movement needs as well as last-mile delivery demands, the critical warehouse role is finding its way into the urban landscape, and existing storefronts are experimenting with micro fulfillment center conversions.

Depot Community Apartments broke ground on November 15th in Hayward. This supportive housing project will be the city's first all-electric building.

Congratulations to Grant Chang, for his recognition as a Small Business Leader of the Year by Pacific Business News! This honor is a testament to the dedication and commitment Grant brings every day to elevate our firm, the community, and the practice of design. We’re proud to have such an inspirational leader paving the way for Hawaii’s built environment. 

Congratulations to Studio Director, Nick Gomez for being recognized as a Multifamily Influencer by GlobeSt.com! A pioneer of modular development, Gomez pushes the boundaries of smart urban design and responsible planning, to deliver cutting-edge projects and respond to the housing crisis.

California’s Gov. Newsom recently signed a slew of bills to help house the state’s rising homeless population, but what do they mean? Ken Lowney provides a Bay Area perspective in the ENR California article, “Major Projects Boost California’s Effort to Build Housing for Homeless People.”

As we work to bring more supportive housing projects to the Bay area, key design elements that differ from traditional multi-family developments need to be considered. Here, Paige Smith outlines and describes the best design strategies for success on these projects.

In the Hawaii Business Magazine article, “Local Architects Talk About Repurposing Existing Buildings in Post-Pandemic Hawai’i,” Grant Chang talks adaptive reuse and shares how to evolve buildings for modern lifestyles and uses, covering every space from office to residential to hospitality.

Congratulations to Anthony Cataldo, AIA, LEED AP for his recent recognition as an Industrial Influencer by GlobeSt.com!

Grocery store formats have only changed in small ways over time – until recently. Emerging trends and consumer behaviors are leading traditional grocery designs to change in unprecedented ways. In the latest issue of Today’s Grocer, Eric Price outlines strategies for these businesses to consider to keep up with new demands.

In the latest issue of Food Logistics Magazine, Senior Project Designer Tim Sloat outlines the latest developments guiding grocery store design and strategies that neighborhood grocery businesses can apply to keep up with the latest trends to deliver positive consumer experiences.

Featured in Episode 13 of the Architecture + Innovation Podcast, Ken joins Tom Dioro to design the design process from the human element through the quantitative process of solving issues and transforming a project vision to reality.

What’s the current housing agenda for San Francisco, and how are architects responding to the demands and opportunities presented by the shifting parameters for new housing? Ken joins seasoned panelists and describes his take on micro-efficiency housing that is affordable by design.

In a collaboration piece with Bisnow, Ken Lowney discusses how the pandemic has highlighted what we've always known: grocery stores are the best development anchors - but they don't come without their own unique design challenges.

Throughout this three-part series, we have looked at optimizing projects for modular construction. In the previous installments, we have explored modular from both the design and fabrication perspectives. Now, we turn our attention to the construction considerations that will help projects take full advantage of the value associated with this construction method.

Featured in the Executive Profile section, Ken Lowney sits with the San Francisco Business Times to discuss everything from his progression from grocery stores to modular projects, from the firm's pandemic pivots to how he envisions the future of cities post-Covid.

Regions like the Bay Area can greatly benefit from modular construction, especially as the area grapples with affordability and housing crises. 

GlobeSt.com just released their 2021 picks for top retail influencers. Among many talented individuals, our firm is honored to have made the list.

The BDA has announced winners of its 14th Biennial Design Awards. Our student housing project, The Nexus, located at 2539 Telegraph Ave, was among seven honored projects and received a citation award based on its excellence in urban planning and innovative design solutions.

But beyond solar panels and sustainable materials, an increasingly pressing issue we face in the 21st century in building is reducing our carbon footprint. As Earth Day approached, we wanted to dig deeper into the environmental impact of one of our greatest areas of specialties: modular design and delivery.

The growing demand for R&D, e-commerce and delivery/warehousing facilities, escalated by the pandemic, has intensified the need for industrial projects to be woven into the fabric of urban planning and design.

Ken Lowney lends insight to John King at the San Francisco Chronicle on how modular building is good urbanism. The article highlights two Lowney projects, Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley and the newly opened Moxy hotel in Oakland, as examples of modular projects that are moving the East Bay forward.

Q: How Can Businesses Redefine Shopping and Dining to Encourage Repeat Local Customers and Draw Tourists?

Early planning and design are vital to maximizing performance and ensuring seamless functionality, explains Anthony Cataldo of Lowney Architecture.

The Architectural Foundation of San Francisco (AFSF) interview, packs in tons of advice on the personality and habits necessary to run a design firm. Ken Lowney describes his road to becoming the CEO of Lowney Architecture.

Designing for flexibility is vital to accommodate the next wave of industrial needs including more maneuverable automated trucks, drones and other means of transporting products to/from warehouses.

Nick Gomez, Director of Lowney Architecture's Multi-Family Housing Studio, offers insight on maximizing modular fabrication in the Jan/Feb 2021 issue of 'Modular Advantage'.

With all of the new technology in architectural computer-aided software like AutoCAD and Revit, it has been fashionable in many architectural circles to declare the death of hand sketching. We strongly feel that architecture is a form of art and some of our staff recently participated in a napkin sketching exercise we did to kick off the new year. Hand drawing is certainly not a lost art here at Lowney, and we encourage our staff to nurture their inner creativity as often as possible!

The unprecedented pandemic we are facing has caused hardships throughout the hospitality industry and tourist destination communities. Yet, we are still seeing brisk business in building and remodeling hotel properties. Why is now a good time to build a hotel in top tourist destinations?

In this episode of Modular Building Institute’s Inside Modular podcast, Nick Gomez, Multi-Family Studio Director at Lowney Architecture, calls in to talk about designing for modular buildings, and the advantages for architects.

Lowney Architecture President & CEO, Ken Lowney recently appeared on The Registry's "Real Perspectives" podcast to discuss forming his own architecture firm, the challenges with doing innovative work, and the opportunities large disruptions like COVID-19 may create for the industry

We’re jumping on the #showusyourshelfie bandwagon to give you a peek inside the minds of Lowney Arch team members. Next up: Landscape Architecture Studio Director, Jennifer Ivanovich.

COVID-19 has brought the travel industry to a screeching halt and hotels are facing an uncertain future. But just like retail, the hospitality industry is looking for ways to sell the public on safety during the pandemic.

A few weeks ago the Lowney Architecture team gathered to quickly sketch and discuss our “pandemic places.” This was, in part, a design-thinking exercise led by the Landscape Architecture Studio, meant to explore how several months of working from home had caused our perceptions of “space” to evolve.

Lowney Architecture worked with Patrick Kennedy at Panoramic Interests to design the MicroPAD (Prefabricated Affordable Dwelling). As a new approach to address the growing number of homeless people in the Bay Area, the MicroPad provides a way to build high-quality housing quickly and economically.

We’re jumping on the #showusyourshelfie bandwagon to give you a peek inside the minds of Lowney Arch team members. Next up: Designer, Annie Tveten.

As school administrators evaluate solutions that allow for the safe return of students in coming months, modular design and construction presents a great opportunities for both short- and long-term considerations.

We’re jumping on the #showusyourshelfie bandwagon to give you a peek inside the minds of Lowney Arch team members. Next up: Design Director, Mark Donahue.

The hospitality industry has taken a massive hit with hotels and restaurants seeing sudden declines due to COVID-19, forcing some to close their doors for good. While some restaurants have remained open for takeout and delivery, providing literal comfort food for anyone hungry for some semblance of normalcy, we’re wondering what comes next as statewide measures to “reopen” are explored?

Today as Texas and Florida orders all bars to shut down again, we're taking a closer look at the future of traditional communal spaces like restaurants, bars, hotels and schools with Ken Lowney, the President and CEO of Lowney Architecture in Oakland.

We’re jumping on the #showusyourshelfie bandwagon to give you a peek inside the minds of Lowney Arch team members. Next up: Desinger, Aleksandra Makuch.

We're excited to announce that earlier this month, a virtual groundbreaking took place for Parrott Street Apartments, our housing project with Eden Housing, Inc. and BBI Construction. Located across the street from the downtown San Leandro BART station, this project will add 62 new units of affordable housing to the East Bay!

We’re jumping on the #showusyourshelfie bandwagon to give you a peek inside the minds of Lowney Arch team members. Next up: Multi-Family Studio Director, Nick Gomez.

Today’s global pandemic has created “permanxiety” for some would-be travelers experiencing stress due to long-term confinement, geopolitical issues, and the ongoing public health crisis. How might an industry built on the idea of escape create new, responsive environments that allow guests to live for today and leave their worries behind for a while? Defining what “getting away” looks like post-pandemic is a worthwhile challenge.

We’re jumping on the #showusyourshelfie bandwagon to give you a peek inside the minds of Lowney Arch team members. First up: Senior Project Designer, Jesse Duclos.

We are seeking a highly qualified senior designer with in depth experience in multi-family housing projects with a minimum of 7-10 years of relevant professional experience.

This month, Ken Lowney spoke at a forum hosted by Bisnow regarding Oakland development trends. Along with other prominent industry experts, Ken explained the Bay Area's shift from traditional construction of multifamily housing to more compact housing with shorter construction times.

Today, the project site of Hale Mahana Collegiate Apartments had its groundbreaking ceremony and a traditional blessing from a Hawaiian Kahuna. Lowney Architecture's Ken Lowney and Brian Nee visited the site along with the Honolulu City Manager, University of Hawaii president, city council members, Laconia, and EDR.

Yesterday, Neil Gray from the City of Oakland came to our office to present the recently adopted revisions to the City of Oakland's off-street parking requirements.

This past Thursday, Lowney Architecture ventured out of the office and over to SFMOMA for some full-scale design inspiration. We took a guided tour of the Mario Botta building and Snøhetta addition, stopping in to appreciate the art exhibits along the way.

A proposal for one of the largest among over a dozen highrise plans recently approved and proposed in Oakland. It would be the only one to combine residential and office space.

Lowney Architect Tony Valadez led a hard hat tour of Lowney's Chow Oakland on Saturday, September 24th.

AIA East Bay will be hosting a tour of Chow Oakland, our project currently under construction on Piedmont Avenue.

On September 8th, the Urban Land Institute hosted a project walkthrough and discussion just days prior to the Grand Opening of the Safeway at the Orchards.

Lowney Architecture hosted the inaugural AIA East Bay ARE-prep Trivia Night at its downtown Oakland office on Tuesday, August 30th.

You are invited to the AIA East Bay's Trivia Night, hosted at the office of Lowney Architecture, in Oakland, CA.

After years of scrapped plans and benign neglect, Oakland’s moldering Kwik Way Drive-In may soon be replaced by a five-story housing and retail development that will stand as tall as the nearby Grand Lake Theater.

Plank is nearly 50,000 square feet and it’s a lot more than a restaurant.

For Ken Lowney, 2012 was “the year of hell.” He had to buy out his business partner and his longtime girlfriend died.