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Client:Mt. Mckinley Bank

Square Footage:4,800

Type: Commercial New Construction

Date of Completion:2006

Location:Fairbanks, Alaska

The Mt. Mckinley bank is located in a mall development populated with "big box" and franchise restaurant businesses typical across the United States. The site is an odd-shaped lot, which restricted the possible building siting and mandated a compact footprint to allow vehicle access for drive-through banking. Because the building is tiny amid its giant neighbors, we wanted to distinguish the building visually from its mega-store context, yet acknowledge its surroundings. We broke the building into four volumes, a departure from the singular box-shaped forms of its adjacent neighbors, accenting each volume with material and color choices that are typical in many mall developments, but used in slightly different ways on the bank. The shape and play of volumes makes the building feel larger, although it is less than 5,000 SF.

As with many banks, much of the building interior is not pubilicly accessible space; the bank lobby and teller areas are the center of public activity. Our goal, given the area constraints, was to make the lobby feel expansive yet welcoming to our bank patrons. The ceiling plane is high, rising and widening from the entry vestibule forcing the visual persepective to broaden. Clerestory windows illuminate the upper surfaces, making the interior volume appear larger and more expansive. Lower lobby windows are large, but focus interior views away from neighobring buildings toward the site landscaping reinforcing the openness of the lobby. To enhance the bank's sense of quality, security and solidity, we chose materials with rich, warm, inviting colors and textures.