1. 1architectural deaiqn
When designing a new lifestyk center, designteams and developers often do not involve operations
andfacilities personnel in the decision-making process until it istoo late.This article serves to outline
some of the many ways that operations and facilitiesteams can contribute to create e successful
project. BY ALLEN DEDELS,AIA
intothearchitedural
center. Debsior#iare
design-and the overall rucceas-of any large
retail project.
In terms of cost, efficiency and overall effectiveness, it is critical
to consider operational issues and their impact on the design deci-
sions early in the planning phases of a lifestyle center. Incuing
additional a s t s and *naive design changes can be reduced by
invoIvingthe client's operatiom department or facilitiespersonnel
earlyand o b n during the designprocessand team meetings.
Sue Rice, director of operations for Mayfaire Town Center in
Wilmington, North Carolina, agrees that king involved early on
can be a life-saver down the road. With any project, operations
inherib what the design and constructionleavesbehind. To have
some say in that early an was key." Ri~ecummenb that for her"to
be able to provide input during the design phase was extremely
beneficial so that wise and practical decisions could be made that
would facilitate ongoingoperations for years to come."
Communication with facilities personnel provides invaluable
information to the design team.Ynteraction typically etarts early
in the design pracess with the project d i t e ~ t s , ~sags Tom
Gilkeson, vice president of operations for Forest City Enterprises,
"Duringthese early meetings,weprovide a list of items tbat should
be included in the projectand how we believetaey should be incor-
porated intothe project."Discussingthe specificoperationalissues
of specific architecturalfeatures early in the design phase, before
the concrete is poured md the streets are paved,can save a lot of

2. architectural designI
At ktyfamTown Center,inWilmington,NOT& Cadiha,o p a h m staff providedthe dimm&mm of containera, requiredtumir - diifor imcks,and the
needsd&t~usbrpleechspecific&cwrt,whichhel@t)le~~aerviceWp-
time, money and headachesfor all project stakeholders. of ample lighting in areas where shoppers are not permitted but
The Shops at Wiregrass in Wesley Chapel, Florida, which held tenants must visit daily, such aa the service cwrt,for pmkd.
ik grand opening in late 2008, is a case etudy demonstrating the Tenants need to f-1 safe takingtheir trash out or acceptingdeliv-
succeae of the collaborationbetween operations and facilities per- eries at night. l o w lighting levels in these areas can create ehad-
sonnel andthe designteamin a e earIylife of the project. Gilkesm ow8 anddark spotswhich become a d t y isaue.The Foreat City
wanted his team "involvedin all aapeetg as it affectad the expri- operations team reviewed the lighting drawings for the Shops at
ence customers would receive."For exampIe, he notes that &public W h g m ~ sand pmvided input tothe lightingd t a n t on provid-
seating and landscaping are important elemenb that are instru- ing the right lighting levels and iktme plawm-t in the service
mental in setting the tone for the shopping center and the experi- court a m .
ence delivered."
'It is important to deliver this experience within parameters
that meet our conetruction budget, but also be budgebfriendlyin
the future,"says Gilkeaon.
Regular project meetings for the Shops at Wiregrass included
typical consultants such aa lighting,landscape, mechanical, el=-
trical and plumbing,and alsobroughtin theForest City operations
team. There were several areas of design on the project where the
information from the operations team guided and influenced the
design team's decisions.
i
LIGHTING DESlQN
The lighting design for The Shops at W i has made the
project come alive at night with decorativea d specialtylight ~IX-
tures.A lot of energy and attention was givento thedection ofthe
particular 6 x t m and the lamp types. The decision waa made to
have multiple decorative light Wures. The operations team sng-
gested that the lamps should all be the erne, so that the facilities
team would not have to order and changenumemu differentlamp
types. With this input, the amount of ~ - ~ c i d ~lamps was kept k
a minimum.
The operations team waa invoked with the selection of the the qmahsmnlh v d dmt d y intheeaFty design
I
decorative light fixturesin the main shopping areas, but also pro- a h d m ammxh,is a kgr in- inthe-ad mruragement -
vided key input on the lightingdesign for the back-of-houseareas. ofa retad-. Pichrd hisMqfamTownCenterm
Operations and fhcilities personnel do not take the importance ~ i k n i w , ~ o r h ~ m h r1
RETAILFACIUTY BUSINESS May 2009 rn 27

3. 1architectural desi,gn
BACK-OF-HOUSEA R W
Service courts are the unattractive,back end of a project,but are
essential to the successful operation of any lifestyle center. There
--are many factors that induence the design and layout of these
areas, such as who will use them and how they will operate. The
rsize of the aervice court can vary depending on the tenant require-
ments, size and number of wmte containers and owner operational
requirements.For MayfaireTown Center,operations staffprovided
*the dimensions of waste containers, required turning radii for
trucks,and the needs ofeach tenant using each specific court,"says
Rice,which "helped the team design service courts properly."
Sin& the trash compactors and dumpsters are located in the
service courts, coordination with and input from the waste man-
agement company or provider can be very helpful in the design.
Waste management will provide design g u i h o e with the layout
based on the tenant mix. They can also review and provide design
input on the service court size based on the size of their trucks and
equipment.Waste receptaclesfor a specificrestaurant may need to
be housed in the building so that it can be refrigerated-it may
be n e c e s s q to keep the odors to a minimum if the service area is
near an exteriorpatio space.The leasingteam may have to give up
valuable space to accommodatethe necessarywaste receptacles.
In addition to the waste containers, service courts can contain
numerous other ustuff to support the operation of the center.
Typically, there are loadingbays for the delivery trucks.The length
of the courts depends on the expected types of delivery trucks.
At Irght:EachfountainatThe Shop et Wregraas requiresd M n t kids of
maintmmceand upkeep.Whendeding thefountainfor a pmj&,
opedons prowdedinput IW to how theywould maintainthefeaturn.Thi
inputwas heavlty rekd u p during the fidd d a n of Ihew&erfedum
28 1 May 2009 .RETAILFAClLrrY BUSINESS

5. provided with a very detailedmap ofall rams so that if an 3wue a presswe w d e r can eawe tb
arises,a Iot of diggingis eat necessary." d btwm the p a m tu b,
~ s m i o n s 4 t hthe aper&ma team on the cleaning program blowna& iftoohigh ofa p
-an inftuence the design andw W o n of a lifemle center'^ paving is d &me t y p a o f p - ma
ma&rkL Pavererequireaddithml carewhen cleaning.Theuse of be easily removed and m p h d1-
RegUterprclljectmeetkrgsfwthe
Smpsat Wimgmm indudad typeal
c o ~ ~sudr as l i n g ,
IandsEape, m ~ i c a l , & & i d e u u i
plumbing,and a h broughtinthe
Fwet3t~operalionsBBam.
when damagedbr at&ed, which
can etwQ h completed by the
facilitiespersonnel.
SECUIL EVEm
Hofldap d h r and promotion-
al evenb can be B ~ ~ Q U Srev-
enue generatom and adequate
utility semkw far h e d v i -
ties am often wrerldtd. The
c e n b court or pbblic meeting
rapaoea have to be -ed to
accommodate multiple holiday
..LY_ _ . . .- . and promatid activities.Early
..S AAmr@fii)3.dWOW I=~c&s~QW~ ~ & , ~ ~ ~p- and dkttasiona wikh
%sw-md,twMisnaptentksai tbe owner*operatiom, and even
1,+& 'E*fkdIy @tactlcw
-mt'ta vendors for the
i "
proamttianal g r o w are key
Eo pmviding the dirsign
with enough input ta l~~tban
Mormd decision. Thme pro-
glrm am w t l y Muence the
d d g n and &ape of the pub-
lic s- and the surrounding
b w i &wing the
menb ta #upport the programs
early in the, deaign phase will
4 t hthe mosteffectiveM a -
sfructwe -hWed d-
CaIwhMted.
Fkdhg the =t spot for ape-
&Ievent e l d d equipment
30 May 2OOQ RETAILFACIUTY BUSINESS

6. architectural desi~nI
I
Allen Dedels, AIA, is an &iwchb d i w at Cooper Carry, a national
design firm. He works in the firm'a retail studio,
NationwideJanitorial,
~aintenahce& Repair
ike You JustP
VI , . , I Rounds with
Your Current Facility
can impact construction ~ 0 8 %building h i g n a d lew13ing.There
are several potential locatians including in-groundd b , on the
building exterior, or housed kn unused retail spaea Zach one of--
these has pros and corn md should be digcussedwith the opera-
1 tims and management team, ineIuding the vendor pmmkiing the
displays and decorations.
If lighting will be provided in
the trees, then electrical outlets
will be required in the planter
beds atthebase of thths treea.This
may require additionalelectrical
conduit and mtIeb. We kept
in mind the fact that a holiday
d4mr packagewould be installed
amaaliy;"says Rice of Mayfaire
Town Center,'and thatavailable
areas would drive decisionsasto
what pieces of ddcor would work
forus?
IncawoperationsandWIitiea
personnel h d themelves not
integrated in the design process,
there are wverd waystobecome
involved. The eotsiest and quick-
est way is ta attend the project
design meetings. Mdwting
in face-to-facemeetings is one of
the best ways fa discuss project
issues. If attending dwignmeet-
ings is not pohble, then review-
ing and providing comments on
the de~igndrawings is a helpful
alternative.Creatingoperational
guidelines in the form of a man-
ual or criteria md providing the
manual at theanset oftheproject
is another way oprational and
facility people canprovide input.
These can range in complexity,
anywhere fmm listing manufae
turers and products to a single
page of service requiremenk
These are only a few iamw
that cm shape andMuace the
desim of a proj&. Many times,
issues tend to b forg~ttenuntil
they pop up later when the proj-
ect is under wmtmction or the
grand opening has taken place.
Having the operations team
tTheStrengthofAICToWorkForYou!
involved not only in the early
design phases, but also d d h g
constmckion,ia a key ingredient
in the sucms and management
ofa retail center. &
"It'sa h e balance between an
I efficient and functional design,"
says Porter. 'A pwductive dia-
logwith operatiomand manage-
ment helps get it done right."
RFB
Services & Facility Management "Coast to Coast"
RWLFACILIIT BUSINESS May 2009 .31