Edgewood Creamery Homewood Ice Cream Shop Scoops AIA Design Award
by: Cathy Adams
Portico Magazine
“When Mountain Brook Creamery owner Jay Conner decided to open a second ice cream shop in Homewood, his business model did not budget for professional architectural design.
“A chance conversation between Jay’s brother, Will, and Mike Gibson of Place Design Collaborative got a talented team of architects and craftsmen involved in concept and construction. The design won a prestigious Award of Merit from the Birmingham Chapter of the American Institute of Architects(AIA).
“‘When Will mentioned a butcher-block look, it cost me a night’s sleep,’ Mike says. ‘I spent the night designing a poor man’s butcher-block, using two-by-fours and scrap materials.’
“In submitting to the AIA competition, Mike and his Partners, Preston Hite, Benjamin Strout and Joshua Dean, described the project’s budget as laughable. Their challenge? Redesign and construct a family-friendly ice cream parlor from a beauty shop with gypsum board walls and concrete floors. Their solution: At a cost of less than $30,000, the team used 1,200 spruce studs to achieve a clean, contemporary and unique look.
“‘They could have entered in a category of projects costing less than $150,000, but this innovative design team chose to compete in a commercial division against projects costing millions and designed by long-established firms,’ says Rhea Williams, Birmingham AIA Executive Director.
“‘We decided to swim with the big dogs,’ says Preston Hite. ‘This project gave us an opportunity to show what design can do to create quality space with little money by using materials that are inexpensive, readily available and easy to work with.’ The four principals in Place Design and Appleseed Workshop feel strongly that architects should be actively involved in the building process.
“Preston studied architecture at Georgia Tech, while Mike and Benjamin graduated from Auburn. And craftsmen Josh Dean has been on board from the conception of Appleseed Workshop. Ben and Mike began the construction company while architecture students at Auburn. ‘We started as professional installers for Lowe’s, then began building furniture in a storage unit,’ Mike says. Hiring Josh at a salary of only bed and board, the three showed their furniture at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair in New York in 2006.
“‘To use everyday materials and have people comment that the end result is beautiful is an accomplishment,’ Mike says. Edgewood Creamery translates the basic wood studs into every surface, from table and chairs to light fixtures, walls and ceilings. The wood is treated with non-water soluble varnish to meet food service codes. Legless bench seating hovers along a north-south axis wall, allowing for easy cleanup.
“The Implications for positive impact from the Edgewood Creamery design and the basic philosophical concepts of Place Designs and Appleseed Workshop reach far beyond Homewood. Committed to hands-on Christian mission construction work around the world, Preston and Mike feel that architects help in knitting communities together. Preston describes the real goal of the firm as providing facilities that meet communities’ physical needs while understanding the importance of designing buildings with volunteer labor in mind.
“As residential and commercial designers, the four partners see advantages to their collaborative work. ‘We are able to maintain the integrity of the design while implementing any necessary changes as we build, and one team means no time wasted,’ Preston says. “The mission of Place Design Studio is to create places that draw people together in a deeper and more meaningful experience of life. We believe in the potential of every detail to make an important difference.’”
