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58 / BUILDING DIALOGUE / March 2022 staircase. The feel of the lobby is expansive, refined and welcoming. Exposed concrete columns are offset with slotted, white oak panels, and black marble behind the reception desk adds a pop of sophistication. “The grand staircase is open and goes up three stories,” says David Morris, One Platte’s lead designer. “The idea was in support of our well-building concept of connec- tivity along those stairs with both a visual and almost physical connection to that open plaza space. It’s a nice gesture to the tenants of the building, but it’s also really important to create a public space that would be used not only by the tenants of the building, but by the people on Platte Street.” The look of the east side of the building is clean and contemporary. Large curtain wall openings are broken up by prefabricated charcoal brick panels with metal details. Visually, while it might not match Platte River Rowing Club, it seems to be an evolution from other new builds on the block. “It’s a complicated façade, but we didn’t want it to look like every other building on Platte,” says Archuletta. “This building is just different. It’s more modern, it pops a little better. It’s what we refer to as a ‘next-level’ office building.” Floor plates and the ‘speed side’ “I think one of the great things about the project is the significant size of the floor plates,” says Morris. “It was something Randy (Nichols) wanted to offer the tenants because there was no other floor plate that was 60,000 square feet of contiguous single-level plate – that he was aware of.” The wide-open floor plates and floor-to-ceiling win- dows flood the space with natural light and views galore. On the west side of the building, Beck and Nichols made design decisions, some daring, in answer to the proxim- ity to I-25. The building’s curvature on the west side is a reaction to the triangulated site, while the glazing and metal medallions are scaled up to create a sense of move- ment. “The design team always referred to it as the speed side,” says Archuletta. “We wanted it to look and feel different from the Platte Street side, so we created these fabricated, concave metal panels that go in alongside the windows to create an angled look to the building.” And to address the traffic noise, Morris and his team worked with acoustical consultants DL Adams. “We have an extra layer of glass in each glass panel,” says Morris. “We also did additional sound insulation work to significantly reduce the noise along I-25. So, the building is really quiet.” Morris and Rummel agree that a key benefit of de- sign-build is the ability to be more aggressive and exper- imental on research and development. That was evident in their approach to dampening the drone of traffic. “We took a standard window wall system and glazed in the brick panels and the metal medallions along I-25,” says Morris. “That had not been done before, so we worked with a company called South Valley Drywall to design a panel that was heavier and had more depth to it, but it had to be able to be glazed into a window wall system, and the same way with the panels. That had nev- er been done within our group, and I don’t know that it’s ever been done in Denver before.” According to Rummel, One Platte office is 50% leased, as of the end of January, with restaurants and retail users still to be determined. But everyone involved is extreme- ly pleased with the outcome. “It’s been such a joy to work with this team,” says Rum- mel. “Beck has been great, and Shorenstein has been so easy to work with. One Platte is the epitome of a great project with a great development team and a smooth de- livery of a beautiful building.” \\ / One Platte / A fitness center is among One Platte's many ammenties. The event space includes a large area for meetings, along with a pre-function area.