1st Bay Development takes a huge step forward

This week IONIC received it approvals for the design from Norfolk's Architectural Review Board on Monday evening but also from Planning Commission on Thursday afternoon. The first phase of the 200+ dwelling mixed use complex in Oceanview neighborhood consists of a single four story building with 18 units above an enclosed parking garage.

We are looking forward to moving ahead with construction documents on this one. It's been in the works for nearly ten years.

D. Eugene Thompson, AIA

Ionic DeZign Studios

www.ionicdezigns.com

Creating places and spaces that enrich the lives of those who use them.

Kiddie Academy Bids are due Today

We are wrapping up the bidding stage of the project today at IONIC. Having gone thru the process of schematic design, design development, planning commission approval and city council reasoning approvals are certainly all huge milestones. Even more significantly are the steps of getting comments back from the city regarding building plan and site review. As an architect let me just say I'm glad we are not civil engineers! They always have so much to respond to at the city. IONIC had a few minor comments and few changes in the scope that the clients wanted to implement but overall we are set.

For the last several weeks we have submitted responses to the bidding contractors questions and held a Jobsite visit......out in an open field! Hey there is a shack onsite for a meeting location. Lol. However now it all comes down to what we always hope for......numbers that correlate to our designs that (as all owners desire) meets our budget established. It will be exciting as they begin pouring in and we find out who out of the six bidders will be the low and responsive number. The owner doesn't always select the lowest bidder because many factors play into the selection of this vital component to our team. 

Yes price is a key ingredient but so is schedule, management, experience and even personalities. It is hard to work with someone you don't get along with for 8 or 9 months unless there is a connection and trust. 

Of course the biggest excitement for IONIC is beginning to see the structure come out of the ground. To see our designs on paper become reality on the parcel of land right here in Virginia Beach. That is truly exciting......and amazing at the same time. WE LOVE OUR JOB!

Good luck to all the bidders out there and we look forward to working with some of you soon. Thanks again for all you do for us!

D. Eugene Thompson, AIA

President/founder

Ionic DeZign Studios

www.ionicdezigns.com

"Creating places and spaces that enrich the lives of those that use them."

Entrepreneurs' Organization Expo

This week was a fantastic introduction to Entrepreneurs Organization at the Expo held at the Ted Contant Center. What an amazing set of speakers with motivational discussions. It was great to hear from national speakers as well as local successful business leaders. Too much to cover in a short blog but here are a few thoughts by each:

Carl Gould

"Businesses can start by accident, but they cannot survive by accident."

"Show up at a level 10 everyday!"

John Lowe

"It's not about you."

"You are in the people business."

"Inform the Rider - Inspire the Elephant - Clear the Path"

"Tell your story better."

Chuck Blakeman

"Cheerful Whistling Allowed"

"Give people their brains back."

"It's a results based world."

"The Art of leadership is to know how few decisions to make."

Roger Arnold

"Awareness Issue"

Reticular Activator"

You will need to look these speakers up and find where they are talking next or buy their books. Guarantee it will be well worth it.

Seek knowledge my friends.

D. Eugene Thompson, AIA

Ionic Dezign Studios.

www.ionicdezigns.com

Retail Design Strategies

Designing retail facilities can be a bit daunting to some architects, especially if they are familiar with the particulars of this type of architecture. So many will say, "Really? It is just a box! How tough can it actually be?" You're right, how tough can it be? Not tough at all if you know what you're doing......pretty complicated if you're not familiar with sales and marketability. So here are a few secrets that IONIC focuses on to make us one of the areas leading designers of retail facilities.

1. Retail Industry is about making money. Don't forget when you're designing the structure that the developer is doing this to make money. If you spend it all on the architecture, he won't be a financially successful. Might look great.....but you may not see that client again. Keep the structure.....or the box.....simple. Not make the actual structure complicated. Spend more than me and money on the facade.

2. The facade is the sales billboard. The building facade should be attractive no doubt. After all the developers cannot fill with tenants if they don't like the building's aesthetics. It needs to attract the tenants as well as being inviting to the future clientele. The looks are one of the biggest selling points a developer has when introducing his product to the market. Another thought to keep in mind....it is the developers PRODUCT, it's your BUILDING. He is selling this thing......you are only drawing it. The facade needs to have the ability to adapt to many different tenants that are out there. Often you won't have a specific tenant to design for......or in five years they may move out and a new one comes in. 

3. Adaptability is Key. It isn't only the facade that needs to be adaptable when the architect is designing the building, it is also the floor plan. The architect needs to think about how the developer can market a space to a particular tenant if he wants 2000 square feet......well you designed it for 2500 SF units......sorry can't help you. In a competitive market you can't afford that......correction....your developer cannot afford that! The plan needs to be able to accommodate many variations if at all possible.

4. Why should I rent here? Good question. Does your new design look like one that was built in 1980 still? Does it look like the one two blocks away......that is renting for $1 SF less? Market appeal isn't always about the stats and particular location. Many times it is about the magnet of business being able to say, " We are in the big green building on the blvd." or "Our coffe shop is the one with the big red canopy." It becomes a sakes tool......it MUST become a sales tool. You don't want your retail facility to look exactly the same as the other four on the same street.

5. Are we there yet? Yep, we hear it all the time at IONIC, when will you be done so I can show people? To be successful as we have been we absolutely have to be quick. The hardest part it matching a design concept to a new client's tastes. Once that is done you need to knock it out quickly. We have developed concepts within a few days already with full blown hi-res renderings. After that construction documents need to be ready......you got it.....the next day. We've completed full sets of retail facilities that range from 6,000 SF to 40,000 SF in as little as three weeks. And I don't mean those sets that include only three sheets of construction details......I mean a FULL set! One that a contractor can confidently build from and that a plan reviewer can permit. Typically....time is money.

So my friends the next time you are looking to design and build a successful retail facility, please give us a call and allow IONIC to share our wealth of experience. You deserve someone who cares as much as you do about your project. 

Visit our website regularly for updates and new projects. www.ionicdezigns.com

We are on all the social websites: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn etc.

Creating place and spaces that enrich the lives of those who use them.

Ionic DeZign Studios.

D. Eugene Thompson, AIA
 

Chartway Federal Credit Union

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Team IONIC is excited to see at least some of the construction beginning on the new renovated headquarters of Chartway. After developing multiple schemes that varied from extensive to minimal,mthe client elected to focus only at the entry way at this time. A floating glass canopy was engineered to minimize interruption with the work day activities by having much of the work prefabricated off site and set in place.

We were also very conscience about the interaction of existing structures to limited construction costs. We believe that once this grand entry feature is added to the facade, the owner will look to continue some further modications that included new sidewalk pavers, lighting and possible even a new fountain centered within the turn-about.

We look forward to seeing the pieces of the canopy being delivered and lifted in place soon. Be sure to watch for some updates and construction photos.

It is a team effort

Lead Architect: Matt Mazzoni

Ionic DeZign Studios

www.ionicdezigns.com

"Creating places and space to enrich the lives of those who use them."

Eugene Thompson

Wicked Taco

Finally wrapped up the design for a new restaurant in Raleigh NC. We anticipated being provided much of the conceptual design by another designer but fortunately for TEAM IONIC we were afforded the opportunity to develop much of the designs both inside and out. The project consisted of renovating an existing vacate Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant of about 3000 square feet. It was a complete gut of the front interior dining area as well as laying out and reutilizing much of the same kitchen plan to minimize costs.

Once we developed the interior seating plan, it was decided that more interior seating would be necessary. With restrictions from easement requirements from overhead power lines and existing drive thru lanes, IONIC was able to incorporate a ten foot addition on the front which allowed to create a new branding image and entry.

The front facade is clad in several rustic type materials including reclaimed tobacco farm barn wood, galvanized coorigated metal and some ledger stone around a few accent columns. The new added dining area opens up to the outside with operating overhead doors allowing extended outdoor dining and fresh air. Both the stone and the metal come down into the interiors giving that inside/outside feeling.

The ceiling with the existing portion of the dining was exposed and painted wood trusses which allowed the round duct work to be an accent weaving through the webs. Lighting of similar industrial flair highlight the various features inside including punctuations of metal and barn wood as an interior finish. Logos and graphics will aborn much of the interior walls as BIG RIVER will decide final placement for much of this work.

We were excited about this new chain of restaurants that will eventually be sprinkled across the east near most of the college university markets. This one just may be the first of many as we are currently under plan review at the city of Raleigh and have sent the project out for bidding by general contractors specializing in restaurant work and fast pace construction methods.

This should be a WICKED one guys. Be sure to check back regularly as we hope to be under construction by the middle of February and complete a few short weeks later.

Everything is a team effort

Lead Designers: Dahlia White and Abby Hoffman

Ionic DeZign Studios

"Where Art and Architectue Come Together."

D. Eugene Thompson

www.ionicdezigns.com

Being a Morning Person

A great little hint from Hal Elrod

Miracle Morning

How you start your day sets the context and your mindset for the rest of the day. 

Yet, most people start the day with procrastination by hitting the snooze button, telling their subconscious that they don’t even have the self-discipline to get out of bed in the morning, let alone do what’s necessary to be happy, healthy and successful.

Stand-up comedian Demetri Martin's humorous take on the subject sums it up well: Hitting the snooze button in the morning doesn’t even make sense. It’s like saying, "I hate getting up in the morning so I do it over and over and over again." 

When the alarm clocks starts beeping in the morning, consider it to be akin to life’s first gift to us. It’s the gift of time to dedicate to creating the life you want and working toward your goals and dreams while the rest of the world is asleep. 

If it weren't for the following strategy, I'd still be snoozing through my alarm clock every morning and clinging to my old limiting belief, claiming that I was not a morning person.  

How do you give yourself the motivation to rise up early and create an extraordinary day, when your wakeup motivation level is only a 1 or 2 on a scale of 1 to 10? 

Follow this five-step strategy, which is so incredibly simple and easy to do, you'll have no excuse to forgo being an early bird and win the day. 

Step #1: Set intentions before bed. 

Your first thought in the morning might be the same as the last one you had before you went to bed. Many people have nights, whether it's Christmas Eve or the prelude to a vacation, when they can hardly fall asleep because they're so excited about waking up the next morning. Then as soon as the alarm clock sounds, they open theigr eyes with enthusiasm to skip out of bed and embrace the day. 

On the other hand, if your last thought before bed is something like “Oh man, I can’t believe I have to get up in six hours; I’m going to be exhausted,” then your first thought when the alarm sounds is likely, “Oh my gosh, has it already been six hours? I just want to keep sleeping!” 

So the key is to consciously decide the next-day's intentions every night to actively and mindfully create a positive expectation for the next morn.

Step #2: Move the alarm clock across the room. 

If you haven’t done so already, move the alarm clock as far away from the bed as possible. This forces you to rise from bed and engage in movement. I find that movement can energize me. But if you keep your alarm within arm’s reach, you’re likely to hit the snooze button every time. 

Step #3: Brush your teeth. 

Give your body time to wake up. After turning off your alarm clock, go directly to the bathroom sink to brush your teeth and maybe splash some warm (or cold) water on your face. Simple activities like these can increase your wakeup motivation level from a 1 or a 2 to a 3 or 4.  

Step #4: Drink a full glass of water. 

This is crucial. After six or eight hours without water, you may be mildly dehydrated, which can cause fatigue. Often when people feel tired what they really need is more water, not more sleep.  

When you drink a glass of water and hydrate yourself, your wakeup motivation level goes from a 3 or a 4 to a 5 or 6. 

Step #5: Get dressed in your workout clothes.  

Dress in your exercise clothes, so you’re ready to leave your bedroom. Some people prefer to start their day by jumping into the shower. But I believe people should earn a morning shower by first breaking a sweat.

In my experience, morning exercise helps me maximize my potential by putting me in a peak mental, physical and emotional state to win the day.