PGAL Team Wins Best Presentation at RDA's Charrette

PGAL employees Jennifer Beebee, Preston Gaines, Andrew Parker, Alysha Koenig, and Danny Salguero, were recently awarded “Best Presentation” at RiceDesignAlliance's (RDA) 15th Annual design charrette - 1:1: A Plaza for the New Big Brothers Big Sisters HQ - organized by rdAGENTS.

Jurors Tei Carpenter (Agency-Agency), Scott Minnix (City of Houston), and Jake Donaldson (Three Square Design Group) convened to study the schemes and select the winners. 11 teams were challenged to conceive and present an outdoor plaza for the new three-story Houston headquarters of Big Brothers Big Sisters Lone Star in one day.

PGAL's design focused on three main and distinct areas. At the café entrance, they created a quiet patio to promote more intimate conversations. In the plaza, the scheme featured a drainage and paving system with grass in between and that grew into different grass and pavement areas. The plaza also featured interactive, natural materials and recycled material “toys” that the matches and community could use (i.e., tunnel, tire jungle gym, interactive table, vertical gardens, amphitheater, music area with a marimba, tree stump drums, and small table seating). The plaza provided safety, protection from the sun, and an array of different activities. On the south side of the building, a concrete wall system was designed that would provide shade for cars and featured metal perforated panels at higher levels so as to not block the view of the building.

Congratulations to the team and to RDA on yet another successful event.