BAU Architecture
BAU Architecture
FALL 2012

New projects:

Dormitory Renovation
BAU upgrades on one wing of the dormitories at Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary.

Projects completed or underway:

Don Guanella Cottage Renovations
Recommended renovations from the spring feasibility study move forward in a series of phases including new fully-accessible ADA shower rooms, kitchen and dining room renovations, front entrance improvements, and corridor finish upgrades.

Research:

Dr. Eugenia Victoria Ellis, AIA presents “Chronobioengineering the Indoor Environment to Enhance Facilities for Aging and Alzheimer’s” at the Academy for Neuroscience and Architecture 1st Annual Conference at the Salk Institute for Biological Sciences in La Jolla, California on September 20.

As part of the Chronobiology and Sleep Working Group at Drexel University, Dr. Ellis presents “Chronobiology and Sleep: Applications to Architectural Design and Lighting” at The Time Has Come: Chronobiology and Sleep Workshop on September 14.

Philadelphia University, Project HOME Women of Change Shelter
The housing unit prototype is manufactured, installed and tested at the Women of Change Shelter.

Exhibitions:

AIA Design Excellence Exhibit
Shadows of the Fallen
VIEW DESIGN . VIEW EXHIBIT INFO
The second place finalist in the Fallen Heroes Memorial Fund’s design competition to honor fallen Philadelphia Police and Firefighters, Shadows of the Fallen is on view at the AIA Design Excellence Exhibition.

InFill Philadelphia: Soak It Up!
Revitalizing Urban Neighborhoods Through Green Stormwater Infrastructure
Eco Amphitheater
VIEW DESIGN . VIEW EXHIBIT INFO
The Eco Amphitheater is accepted into the juried competition. Soak It Up! an exhibition celebrating innovative stormwater management solutions for the urban environment from around the country.

SUMMER 2012

New projects:

Project HOME St. Columba
Design development kicks off for renovations at St. Columba Safe Haven. St. Columba is one of very few, possibly the only, safe haven shelters in Philadelphia accessible to individuals in wheelchairs. BAU works with the project team and residents to create a vision that will make the shelter feel more like home to residents while improving the efficiency of daily shelter functions. BAU also assists Project HOME with construction administration and finishes consultation on a number of other small projects.

Research:

Philadelphia University, Project HOME Women of Change Shelter
David Kratzer leads Philadelphia University students in the design and development of an innovative new housing unit for transitional homeless shelters. The unit consists of a bed, nightstand, and storage areas. The goal is to address a myriad of common issues in the transitional housing environment including privacy, safety, security of belongings, individuality, and pest control. In this hands-on experimental learning course, students work with shelter administrators, residents, and materials experts to develop their design proposals.

SPRING 2012

New projects:

Don Guanella Cottage Renovations
Don Guanella Village in Springfield PA has six existing cottages that house young men and boys with developmental disabilities. The cottages have not been renovated in a number of years and are in need of accessibility and aesthetic improvements that will support the residents’ daily activities. BAU leads a feasibility study to consider ways the existing cottages can be renovated to create a greater sense of home and community.

Projects completed or underway:

Cheltenham Township
BAU continues work with Cheltenham Township on a number of essential facilities improvements. Construction on the roof and siding renovations at the Police Station are finished. Design development and bidding for the Public Services Building roof project are complete with construction anticipated to begin summer 2012.

Awards:

Fallen Heroes Memorial Competition
BAU is awarded 2nd place in the competition for a new memorial located in historic Franklin Square Philadelphia to honor the fallen firefighters and police officers in Philadelphia. VIEW ARTICLE ON PHILLY.COM

WINTER 2012

New projects:

Convent Feasibility Study
An existing convent adjacent to the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in center city is underutilized. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia retains BAU to explore renovating the building into a mixed-use occupancy to better utilize the available space. New functions include rectory business offices on the main floor with guest suites and apartments for rectory staff occupying the 2nd and 3rd floors.

Eco Amphitheater and Grove Park House Feasibility Study
BAU Architecture conducts a feasibility study on behalf of Abington Township. The goal is to explore ways stormwater management principles can be used to establish a dynamic public space. Features include an eco amphitheater for community theater and music performances, improveing access to the adjacent creek for all citizens, and street calming rain water planters to encourage pedestrians.

Research:

ASID Foundation Transform Program
Applied Research in Interior Design and Human Behavior

American Society of Interior Designers Design Research Program award for “Ameliorating Symptoms of Dementia at St Francis Country House: Evidence-Based Design study of the efficacy of a daylight-matching, low-energy LED luminaire prototype”. BAU is part of a Drexel University research team working with the Center for Health Design.

Dr. Ellis represents Drexel University in Washington, DC at the Council of Environmental Deans and Directors, a professional association of academic environmental leaders.

Dr. Ellis presents “New Academic Initiatives in Sustainability: Research and Teaching Potentialities” at the Drexel Center for Academic Excellence workshop.

Dr. Ellis moderates a panel of distinguished guests on the topic of urban agriculture for the theatrical premier in Philadelphia of Urban Roots, a documentary film by Tree Media, which explores the urban farming phenomenon in Detroit, Michigan.

FALL 2011 BACK TO TOP

New projects:

Salt Wing at the Norristown Farm Park’s Dairy Barn
Design is finalized for this wing of the historic dairy barn. The barn space is reinvented as a museum to showcase the history of the region’s agrarian beginnings. This project will give the public further insight into the importance of the historic collection of buildings that are protected within Norristown Farm Park.

Glenside Free Library
Construction begins on lighting upgrades to improve lighting quality and flexibility within the Main Reading Room, Main Entrance, Women’s Auxiliary Room, and ADA Toilet Room, as well as accessibility improvements and aesthetic upgrades to the ADA Toilet Room.

Projects completed or underway:

Don Guanella School
Bidding phase for renovation work

Center City Office Building
Bidding phase for renovation work

Exhibitions:

less.home.less
Dave Kratzer and BAU collaborate with Project H.O.M.E and Philadelphia University on a multi-discipline exhibition. Artwork from Project H.O.M.E residents are displayed together with PhilaU architecture student work focused on mixed-use projects designed to end Philadelphia’s homeless epidemic.

Leverage: Strengthening Neighborhoods through Design
Southern Gateway Corridor to the Kensington Community: West Kensington Neighborhood Revitalization along 2400-2600 of Kensington Avenue for this Community Design Collaborative exhibition highlights BAU urban redevelopment proposals, main street design guidelines, and master site planning and feasibility studies for the Visitation Blessed Virgin Mary (BVM) campus.

Interior Space: Process and Product
BAU exhibits Transforming Space/Reimaging Health at the Raritan Valley Community College exhibition geared toward exposing students to the career opportunities available in architecture and interior design.

SUMMER 2011

New projects:

Curtis Hall
Renovation design and construction for upgrades to the HVAC systems at historic Curtis Hall located inside the Curtis Arboretum in Cheltenham Township, a treasure listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The goal is to increase energy efficiency of the HVAC system and decrease the noise generated by the old system while respecting the sensitive historic nature of the building. The existing system was so loud it had to be turned off in order for speakers to be heard.

Shrine to Our Lady of Guadalupe and Our Lady of Vailankanni
The spatial design of shrines to Our Lady of Guadalupe and Our Lady of Vailankanni inside the Shrine of the Miraculous Medal located in Germantown required the sculpting of worship spaces within a large basement chamber directly adjacent to restroom facilities. The design solution established two autonomous spaces for contemplation and reflection through spatial barriers designed to maximize accessibility to both shrines while disguising the washroom in close proximity.

Center City Office Building
Space planning, moderate renovation coordination, and move assistance to ensure a smooth transition during internal organizational restructuring.

Projects completed or underway:

McKenzie Brew House
Construction begins on the façade of the newest McKenzie Brew House in Berwyn.

Research:

Dr. Ellis presents “Ecological Urban Environments: Networked Adaptable Human-Building Ecosystems” at the International Green Energy Economy Conference hosted by the Korea Energy Economics Institute in Washington DC.

SPRING 2011

New projects:

Don Guanella School
Renovation of Don Guanella School in Springfield, PA includes the design and construction administration of the conversion of a large open workroom at the school into four individual classrooms for middle and high school students. Don Guanella School provides residential and rehabilitative services for individuals with cognitive and developmental disabilities. Design focus includes maximizing accessibility and daylighting in the new spaces.

Cheltenham Township
Feasibility study services to improve energy and programmatic efficiency at several township buildings.

McKenzie Brew House
Façade design for the newest McKenzie Brew House in Berwyn and the first McKenzie’s located within a linear shopping center complex. The unique challenge is to establish a strong identity to set the restaurant apart from the rest of the strip mall while being respectful and sensitive to the overall aesthetic. The goal is to design a bold façade that will attract customers from nearby US Route 202.

Research:

Green Building Alliance Proof-of-Concept Grant
BAU is collaborating with Drexel University, Appalachian Lighting Systems, Crystalplex and Pulsar Informatics on innovative LED lighting technologies. The team is developing a ceiling- and wall-mounted LED luminaire that will ameliorate systems of dementia and sleep disturbances for Saint Francis Country House.

Wearable Optical Fiber-based LED Light for Photodynamic Therapy
A portable, wearable, photodynamic therapy device using LEDs is being invented to activate a photosensitive compound developed by Case Western Reserve University to heal various skin disorders such psoriasis.

Dr. Ellis’ article, “The Red Square: Frank Lloyd Wright, Theosophy and Modern Conceptions of Space” is published in Theosophical History.

Dr. Ellis presents “Daylighting, Daylight Simulation and Public Health: Low-Energy Lighting for Optimal Vision/Visual Acuity and Health/Wellbeing” and “Energy and Environmental Aspects of Data Centers” at the World Renewable Energy Conference in Linköping, Sweden.

Dr. Ellis presents “(re)Visiting the City of Dreams” at Mobilities in Motion Conference at Drexel University.

Awards:

Preservation Achievement Grand Jury Award
The Norristown Farm Park receives the Preservation Achievement Grand Jury Award from the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia for the renovation and restoration of seven of the park’s ten historic buildings.

Leab Book Award
Claude Bragdon and the Beautiful Necessity wins the 2011 Leab Book Award administered by the American Library Association/Association of College & Research Libraries Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (Category One). These awards are given annually in recognition of excellence in the publication of catalogues and brochures that accompany exhibitions of library and archival materials. Catalogues are judged on originality, accuracy of detail, informational content, visual impact, contribution to scholarship, and usefulness to the intended audience.

Exhibitions:

Dark Light, the luminous wall surfacing system funded by the Green Building Alliance that BAU developed with Drexel University, is exhibited as part of the Westphal College Faculty Exhibition.

WINTER 2011

Research:

Urban Turbine
Dr. Ellis receives $20,000 grant from NetScientific America and $5,000 from the Pennsylvania Energy Commercialization Institute (ECI) for the development of the “Urban Turbine”, an alternative energy technology to capture both low and high velocity wind energy to supply electricity to buildings. The wind turbine is suitable for all building types, residential, commercial and institutional, with an impact to a building’s structure comparable to a solar array.

Dr. Ellis joins the Faculty Advisory Board for the Center for Mobilities Research and Policy (mCenter) at Drexel University.

Dr. Ellis represents Drexel University in Washington, DC at the Council of Environmental Deans and Directors, a professional association of academic environmental leaders, and attended “Our Changing Oceans” at the 11th National Conference on Science, Policy and the Environment.

FALL 2010 BACK TO TOP

New projects:

Wildcat Manor
Working with Delaware State University on the historical aspects of a site visitation and recommendations for the restoration and/or preservation of Wildcat Manor, a historic farmstead and stop on the Underground Railroad located on a Native American burial ground and superfund site near Camden, Delaware.

Archdiocese of Philadelphia Residential Upgrades
Residential upgrades to existing historic Philadelphia residential buildings for various members of the Archdiocese.

Research:

Dave Kratzer coordinates the 2nd-year sustainability foundation program for Philadelphia University. Gena Ellis leads a trans-disciplinary research initiative for the Drexel Engineering Cities Initiative that brings together over twenty faculty from six colleges and over a dozen disciplines to develop research and education programs in sustainable design for the indoor environment.

Dr. Ellis chairs the panel presentation “Scientific and Occult Influences on Modern Conceptions of Space” at the Society for Literature, Science and the Arts conference 28-31 October in Indianapolis. Marica Feuerstein and Marie Frank, two of the authors from Claude Bragdon and the Beautiful Necessity participate in the panel.

Exhibitions:

INPUT_OUTPUT: Adaptive Materials and Mediated Environments Symposium and Exhibition
BAU Architecture contributes to Design Philadelphia with the exhibition of Dark Light as part of INPUT_OUTPUT: Adaptive Materials and Mediated Environments Symposium and Exhibition 6-16 October at the Tyler School of Art at the Temple University Main Campus in Philadelphia.

SUMMER 2010

New projects:

Cheltenham Township
Feasibility Study and Renovations to the Police Headquarters in Elkins Park for Cheltenham Township.

Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Campus Plan Study
Feasibility Study and Conceptual Design in the Kensington area of Philadelphia to study the public spaces surrounding the community center, domestic violence shelter, school, church, administrative offices and community gardens for the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and make recommendations to unify this urban area for the Office of Community Development.

Projects completed or underway:

Madison @ Montgomery Community Center
Project is under construction.

Norristown Farm Park Renovations
The Shannon Mansion and Phase II Renovations are complete.

Locust Street Residence
Renovations and upgrades are finished and home is occupied.

McKenzie Brewhouse
The exterior grotto for the McKenzie Brewhouse has been built and is providing outdoor space for dining and summer activities.

Saint John’s Hospice Homeless Shelter
Feasibility Study for Saint John’s Hospice Homeless Shelter for Catholic Social Services branch of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia has been finished with recommendations made and will be used to secure funding for the project.

Kensington Façade Design Guidelines
The Kensington Façade Design Guidelines have been completed and submitted to the Office of Community Development and City of Philadelphia for use by building owners to secure grant funding for façade improvements. The Guidelines also serve as a blueprint to help retain the historic character, unify, and grow this important Philadelphia commercial corridor.

Research:

Dave Kratzer directs the Design Build summer studio at Philadelphia University by leading student teams in the construction of permanent spatial/tectonic installations throughout the School of Architecture building.

On August 4 at Writers & Books in Rochester, New York Dr. Ellis signs books and presents “The Beautiful Necessity: The Regulating Lines of Claude Bragdon’s Transcendental Architecture”.

The results of research into “Increasing Energy Efficiency and Visual Comfort with Light Shelves and Artificial Lighting” conducted by Andrea Del Risco for Dr. Ellis for the DECI Research Experience for Undergraduates National Science Foundation program were presented in August.

SPRING 2010

Research:

On May 24 at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. Dr. Ellis presents “Building the Green Economy: Drexel Smart House and University Research in Sustainable Systems”.

On 21 April Dr. Ellis provides expertise in architecture and copyrights for the panel discussion “Inspiration, Derivation or Appropriation?: Defining Ownership in the Arts” at the 8th Annual Drexel University Libraries Scholarly Communication Symposium.

Dr. Ellis co-edited Claude Bragdon and the Beautiful Necessity with exhibition curator and archivist Andrea Reithmayr, a book and exhibition catalogue published by the Rochester Institute of Technology Cary Graphic Arts Press this April. The book includes over 200 images and eleven essays by the notable authors Paul Emmons, Marcia Feuerstein, Marie Frank, Jean France, Joscelyn Godwin, Linda Dalrymple Henderson, Christina Malathouni, Jonathan Massey, Mary Nixon, Joan Ockman, and Richard Guy Wilson.

Exhibitions:

Dark Light is part of the annual anneX exhibition of work by students and faculty during May at Drexel University.

WINTER 2010

Research:

Dr. Ellis receives a Westphal College Synergy Grant for $7,500 to work with the Dermatology Department at Case Western Reserve University Hospital on “Wearable Optical Fiber-based LED Lighting for Photodynamic Therapy”.

In February for the Drexel Engineering Cities Initiative Dr. Ellis presents the research results for the two funded research projects: “Daylighting, Daylight Simulation and Public Health: Low-Energy Lighting for Optimal Vision/Visual Acuity and Health/Well-being” and “Reducing Climate-Change Impacts of the Information Age: Optimizing Data Center Operations”.

FALL 2009 BACK TO TOP

Research:

David Kratzer will be conducting a Third Year Sustainable Design Studio and its companion technology class at Philadelphia University.

At the Pennsylvania Green Growth Partnership’s BuildGreen09 Conference October 14-15, Dr. Ellis will be participating in the panel presentation "Private and Public Investment in Green Product Research" for the Research - Product Development track. Showcased in poster presentations will be the research Dr. Ellis has collaborated on with students from the Drexel Smart House and faculty from the College of Engineering: Dark Light, a low-energy luminous wall surfacing system; Composite Solar Lighting; and Flexible Floor Plans, a modular, sustainable and reconfigurable residential wall system.

During October 28-30 at Design on the Delaware, the Philadelphia Chapter of the American Institute of Architects Annual Conference, Dr. Ellis will be presenting “Architectures of Well-Being: Photobiology, Biomimicry and Biophilia” for one of the Technology sessions.

In November Dr. Ellis will be presenting “A Cosmotheistic Basis for Sustainable Architecture: Mimesis and Ancient (eco)Logical Practices of Divining the Constructed World” to the Philadelphia Chapter of the American Institute of Architects committee Interfaith Forum on Religion, Art and Architecture.

For the Drexel Engineering Cities Initiative fall seminar, in November Dr. Ellis will be presenting the research results of two funded research projects: “Daylighting, Daylight Simulation and Public Health: Low-Energy Lighting for Optimal Vision/Visual Acuity and Health/Well-being” and “Reducing Climate-Change Impacts of the Information Age: Optimizing Data Center Operations”.

SUMMER 2009

Projects completed or underway:

Madison @ Montgomery Community Center
BAU has completed Construction Documents, project is out to bid.

Historic LaMott Community Center
BAU successfully completed the Phase 9 Renovations.

Research:

Melissa Van Slett has achieved LEED Accredited Professional status by the United States Green Building Council.

David Kratzer co-conducted an Architecture Program design-build studio at Philadelphia University. In collaboration with the Industrial Design and Occupational Therapy Programs, the studio completed a flexible hygiene station for the Philadelphia University Institute for Aging. Developed through research, user interviews, workshops and mock-ups, the station is to grow and change as the user ages.

Gena presented the paper entitled “Mimēsis and (eco)Logical Design: the Cosmotheistic Basis of Sustainable Architecture” at the 3rd International Conference of the International Society for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture held in Amsterdam July 23-26.

Gena presented her research on “Cosmotheism and Sustainability” to the residents of Arcosanti, Paolo Soleri’s Urban Laboratory in Arizona.

SPRING 2009

New projects:

Settlement Music School-Jenkintown Branch
BAU is providing interior design services to facilitate its relocation to the new Willow Grove Branch scheduled to open in Spring 2010.

Research:

Gena is working with the University of Rochester on a catalogue entitled Claude Bragdon and The Beautiful Necessity to accompany the exhibition of Bragdon’s work scheduled to open in Rochester, New York April 2010. This two-volume boxed set will include twelve essays by notable authors and 150 images of Bragdon’s work, to include: personal ephemera; architectural drawings/photographs; bookplate, poster and book cover designs; schema for and ephemera from “Song and Light” festivals; color music notations; and theater designs.

As co-Director of the Drexel Engineering Cities Initiative, Gena participated in a panel discussion entitled, “Retrofitting Existing Urban Spaces” for the two-day conference “Greening the Post-Industrial City: Innovative Reuse of Philadelphia’s Idle Lands” held at The Academy of Natural Sciences April 23-24

David Kratzer taught a Sustainable Design Studio course and its companion Technology course for the Spring Semester at Philadelphia University.

WINTER 2009

New projects:

Historic LaMott Community Center
BAU has been hired to design and administer Phase 9 Renovations.

Research:

BAU has been invited to participate in a university/industry research partnership to design a Composite Solar Luminaire, which will provide daylight illumination to an interior when used with a commercially available daylight harvester.

FALL 2008 BACK TO TOP

Projects completed or underway:

Norristown Farm Park Renovations
The Norristown Farm Park Renovations for the PA Department of General Services was bid. For results go to www.dgs.state.pa.us

McKenzie Brewhouse
Metro, a banquet room designed by BAU which can transform into a nightclub opened.

Mirarchi Brothers Offices
BAU completed studies for two office building renovations and additions for Mirarchi Brothers, electrical contractors located in Doylestown.

Research:

Eugenia Ellis and David Kratzer participated in the panel presentation and discussion “Building the Green Economy: University Research in Sustainable Systems” for the 2008 Design on the Delaware symposium in Philadelphia.

Eugenia presented recent developments in her “Dark Light” research work. David presented advisory work BAU has been performing with the Drexel Smart House, a student organization undertaking the renovation of a building in Powelton Village into a sustainable living laboratory (see www.drexelsmarthouse.com).

Eugenia Ellis and David Kratzer worked with Mike Funk of International Consultants Inc. on a pricing package for the winning Drexel Smart House scheme, which was developed last fall with Sherman Aronson (BLT Architects) for the interdisciplinary design studio they taught at Drexel University.

SUMMER 2008

Projects completed or underway:

Historic LaMott Community Center
Renovations are completed for Phase 8.

Norristown Farm Park Renovations
BAU completes design and documentation for renovations to two historic buildings for the Montgomery County Department of Parks and Heritage Services, The 1760 Shannon Mansion and the 1850 Rothenberger Homestead.

SPRING 2008

Projects completed or underway:

Abington Township
BAU completed a Branch Library and Art Center feasibility study for Abington Township exploring the development potential for an existing building.

Research:

David Kratzer was a steering committee member the High School Park MasterPlan Study focused on exploration of appropriate environmental strategies for the use and care of the community park.

Eugenia Ellis, David Kratzer and Sherman Aronsen (BLT Architects) co-taught an interdisciplinary design studio at Drexel University to further develop the two winning schemes for the Drexel Smart House.

Eugenia Ellis commenced a Drexel University grant project "Dark Light" with BAU Architecture and Cee-Lite Industries. The grant explores the residential potential of Cee-Lite's LEC electroluminescent technology through the design of low-level energy-efficient acoustic wall tiles.

Eugenia Ellis presented the paper The Cosmogenesis of Dwelling: Ancient (eco)Logical Practices of Divining the Constructed World" at the 2nd Conference of the International Society for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture at Morelia, Mexico.

WINTER 2008

Projects completed or underway:

Saint John Neumann Nursing Home Nurse Station and Resident Room Renovations
BAU completed the design and documentation.

Saint John Neumann Nursing Home Community Sunroom Addition
Bids were received.
BAU Architecture