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84 / BUILDING DIALOGUE / June 2020 / Buell Public Media Center / this desire for community connection.” External Expression Reflects the Mission As the Mortenson crews wrap up the punch list and interior details are fine- tuned, Buell Public Media Center appears to have realized the ambitious vision of Mountain and her team. Its overall scale, use of textured red brick and expansive courtyard moves seamless- ly with the historic Paris Hotel building next door. The exterior skin’s metal panels, coupled with raw exposed iron beams on the interior, are clear nods to the neighbor- hood’s industrial past. At the pedestrian level, walls of windows and wide, welcoming glass doors invite the public into the space and it feels more like a hotel entrance than a media center. The massive windows bathe the interior space in light and beau- tifully break up the massing. Along the 21st Street side where the Masterpiece Theater dominates, more large windows break up the massing, but these house 55-inch LEDmonitors that will beam live events, broadcasts and event schedules. Along the Arapahoe-facing side, another expansive window wel- comes pedestrians to stop and watch live concerts in the Perfor- mance Studio space. If visibility and transparency were the goals, the team delivered a show-stopper. The grand lobby features a pleasant interweaving of industrial and contemporary finishes with cedar ceilings and two-story ver- tical wood slat wall panels adding warmth, beautiful hanging light fixtures, tan masonry walls, polished concrete floors and raw, ex- posed iron beams. It’s not overstated, but a level of elegance and sophistication not associated with a civic building. Media’s New Way of Doing Business “We believe the project has delivered significant value for RMPM and represents a real cultural shift,” says McIntyre. “It’s a differ- ent way of working, which I think is going to be really exciting for them as an organization.” “I’m really proud of the team that came together to make this vision a reality,” says Mountain. “It has been a wild ride to get here in a relatively short period of time. Our team has just been so fo- cused, so committed and that it’s even a reality for us to be moving in and be on budget is just a miracle. It’s a miracle created by these extraordinary people whose commitment far exceeds professional boundaries.” And while the building itself is a success, what it means for the future of journalism in Colorado could be immense. “It’s necessary,” says Susan Greene, editor at The Colorado In- dependent and former Denver Post columnist. “Many of us have spent much of our careers in newsrooms, so it will put us back in that creative environment where we have proximity to each other. News and collaboration grow out of that proximity. So, a cowork- ing space, in addition to that sort of pre-existing spirit of collabora- tion, is a way to really change the way we do business.” \ \ PROJECT TEAM DEVELOPER: ROCKY MOUNTAIN PUBLIC MEDIA GENERAL CONTRACTOR: MORTENSON CONSTRUCTION MANAGER: WELLS PARTNERSHIP ARCHITECT: TRYBA ARCHITECTS LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT: DESIGNS BY SUNDOWN STRUCTURAL ENGINEER: THORNTON TOMASSETTI ABOVE: The first floor of the 65,000-square-foot facility incorporates this 125-seat Masterpiece Theater.