When the City of Delaware, Department of Administrative Services was fighting inefficiencies in an outdated building, they turned to ms consultants to create an employee-centered workplace.

The ms team designed the interior renovation of the existing 3-story, 19,000-square-foot historic city building. The interior renovation needed to maintain the building’s historic character. The city building was built nearly a century ago and is located in the heart of the historic district in downtown Delaware, Ohio.

There were many predesign challenges to overcome. These challenges were due to previous attempts to update the building’s interior nearly thirty years ago. The ms team’s detailed approach included special considerations for overcoming these challenges.

The team began the predesign process by conducting preliminary design workshops. These workshops were held with city departments, stakeholders, and the public. Staff utilization and department engagement studies were also performed. With key takeaways from these exercises, the team was able to determine priorities for design. Understanding the priorities, the team could prioritize critical work environments during design. This led to a seamless transition to schematic design.

Ultimately, the key takeaways from predesign activities lead to a clear understanding of priorities for the entire team and a smooth design process. Understanding the priorities from the beginning, the team was able to preserve the building’s original character while implementing the modern functionality required by its staff.