UNM Physics & Astronomy Interdisciplinary Science Facility
General Contractor: Bradbury Stamm Construction Inc.Architect: VHG Architects, EYP ArchitectureEngineers: Isaacson & Arfman, P.A.; Bridgers & Paxton; Chaves-Grieves Consulting Engineers
NAIOP’s signature award, designed to celebrate the projects that has had the most impact on the physical and economic development environment, was given this year to the University of New Mexico’s Physics & Astronomy Interdisciplinary Science Facility.
The new four-story, 139,000-square-foot research center near Central and Yale will house physics, astronomy and interdisciplinary sciences. The facility includes a number of types of laboratories, classrooms, an interior living room, offices and group spaces.
Amy Coburn, UNM’s university architect and director of planning, design and construction, oversaw the architectural and planning side of the project.
Hospitality
Marriott Springhill Suites Downtown
Owner: Urban Hospitality NM, LLC
Developer: Titan Development and Maestas Development Group
General Contractor: Jaynes Corp.
Architects: 5G Studio Collaborative, Yellowstone Landscaping
Engineer: Bohannan Huston Inc.
The Marriott Springhill Suites at The Highlands is a six-story hotel with five levels of living space and a podium parking structure. With 118 studio-style suites, the new hotel creates an urban edge along Central Avenue that promotes walkability and pedestrian safety. The podium parking, and reconfiguration of Mulberry Street to include on-street parking, were implementations of urbanist design ideas that will help reduce traffic, promote a healthy lifestyle, and create a center of commerce that promotes a sense of community. The development includes a purpose-built ART stop which provides a mass transit option to reduce traffic congestion on-site. The hotel is the first project to be completed at The Highlands, a live, work, play urban mixed-use concept with $120 million in planned development. The 12-acre, five-block master plan will include multifamily, retail, restaurant and hospitality, and provide residential near major employers.
Industrial/Infrastructure (Tied)
7601 Los Volcanes NW, Unit C
Owner: Brunacini Development Ltd. Co.
Developer: Brunacini Development Ltd. Co.
General Contractor: G A Brunacini Construction
Architect: Tate Fishburn Architect
Engineers: Tierra West, Testudo Engineering, Randy’s Electric, J Arthur Blessen
The 10.7-acre, 140,450-square-foot development at 7601 Los Volcanes NW, Unit C, is part of Meridian Business Park at the southeast quadrant of Interstate 40 and Unser. The site is part of a 22-acre parcel originally 
developed as a FedEx Freight facility in 2008. Brunacini Development later divided the 22-acre parcel into four condominium units and demolished the truck terminal building with the intent of increasing the possible uses of the property while maximizing the value of existing infrastructure. On the largest of the four condominium units, Brunacini Development constructed the new 140,450 square foot warehouse, which features a clear height of 32-feet and modern concrete tilt construction. The building offers ample dock high loading positions, 140-foot truck court, abundant trailer parking and an enhanced ESFR fire sprinkler system. The site had existing improvements from FedEx’s tenancy such as 650kva generator, existing on-site utilities, and eight-foot wrought iron security fencing on the property’s perimeter. The broker on the project was Johnson Commercial RE.
2020 Chuck Gara Community Leader
Gary Tonjes, longtime president of Albuquerque Economic Development, has been recognized as the 2020 Chuck Gara Community Leader Award winner. The award celebrates community leaders who demonstrate professionalism and commitment to New Mexico, in honor of Chuck Gara, a local real estate broker.
Tonjes departed AED July 31 after 25 years at the helm. During Tonjes’ tenure, AED helped recruit a number of major companies to the region, including Facebook, Fidelity Investments, HP, Netflix, NBCUniversal and TempurPedic.
At an event in July, Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller credited Tonjes for AED’s role in bringing more than 100,000 to Central New Mexico.
Since departing his role as president, Tonjes has opened an economic development consulting firm and is contracting with AED.
Industrial/Infrastructure (Tied)
Kirtland Resiliency Project
Owner: Emera Technologies/Kirtland Air Force Base
Developer: Emera Technologies LLC
General Contractor: KL House Construction
Architect: Dekker/Parich/Sabatini
Engineers: Bohannan Huston Inc., Bridgers & Paxton, QPEC
Emera Technologies’ Kirtland Resiliency Project at Kirtland Air Force Base introduces the BlockEnergy Smart Platform by Emera Technologies, a world’s first distributed energy system that eliminates complexity and risk with a future-proof platform and accessible technology. BlockBoxes that contain battery storage and electronic controls, along with solar panels, are installed on base buildings at the project site. These local generation and storage sites interconnect in a selfsustaining BlockLoop using smart, distributed energy controls that allow easy scalability to meet new load demands. The BlockLoop is then connected back to BlockCentral which has supplemental generation, battery storage, controls, and protection, and is the single-point interface to the local utility. The platform operates and integrates seamlessly with the local utility grid, providing grid services when required, but can act independently when the local grid is down, providing the resiliency that Kirtland requires.
Mixed Use/Multi-Family
De Anza Motor Lodge
Owner: Anthea at Nob Hill
Developer: Anthea at Nob Hill
General Contractor: HB Construction
Architect: The Hartman + Majewski Design Group
Engineer: Heatly Engineering
The De Anza Motor Lodge is an iconic hotel along historic Route 66 that has been a landmark for New Mexico, Albuquerque, and the Nob Hill 
neighborhood. It was a trading post for the Pueblo of Zuni, a welcome respite for tourists and local attraction, and has been granted landmark status by the City of Albuquerque. The design of the De Anza Motor Lodge was a balance between keeping the historic motor court motel typology while reviving this Nob Hill neighborhood. The design maintained the motor court concept, but the buildings changed from hotel rooms opening inward to the motor court to modern apartments opening outward. The apartments are energy efficient, have high ceilings, large windows and offer views of the mountains, city and historic Route 66. The massing, scale, color, tones and textures of the project reflect the historic De Anza Motel. An amenity building was built in the center over an existing basement that houses preserved historic Zuni murals.
Community Civic/Public
Artesia Aquatic Center – Phases 1 & 2
Owner: Artesia Aquatic Center Foundation, City of Artesia, Artesia Public Schools
General Contractor: Jaynes Corp.
Architect: Huitt-Zollars, Inc; AE Design
Engineers: Huitt-Zollars, Inc., QA Engineering, Desert Eagle Engineering, LLC
Locals organized a private foundation to partner with the public sector and raised the funds needed to build the multi-generational, indoor and outdoor Artesia Aquatic Center. The focal point of the project, the large pool, was designed and executed in the shape of a bulldog to reflect the high school mascot. Residents will have access to a state-of-the-art facility with two indoor pools, a 25-yard/eight-lane competition pool, and a 60-foot long, 4-lane flexible/training warm-up and cool-down pool. The outdoor facility offers a shallow, zero-entry pool with interactive features such as a 25-foot-tall oil rig that bursts water at the top and a large, 4,000-square-foot pool, which also features a lazy river and three large slides.
Education – less than 50,000 square feet
Santa Fe Public Schools – Aspen Community School
Owner: Santa Fe Public Schools
General Contractor: Enterprise Builders
Architects: The Hartman + Majewski Design Group, MRWM Landscape Architects
Engineers: The Hartman + Majewski Design Group, Bridgers & Paxton, Heatly Engineering
Aspen Community School is a newly consolidated K-8 school that was housed in two separate buildings. The original project directive was a new library and cafeteria to support the consolidation; however, through it became evident other strategic elements were necessary that also created opportunities for campus unification. The addition not only serves the newly integrated student population, but also physically creates a unified campus. The “living room” is a new gathering space that provides direct access to all students. The design team worked closely with Santa Fe school staff to identify project goals for cultivating community. The project included significant exterior spaces enhancements, such as an integrated play and outside teaching areas for all grade levels. Ultimately, the new design promotes a positive and functional connected indoor and outdoor environment for all. The new naturally lighted “living room” connects the new cafeteria and performing arts stage to a new courtyard for outdoor learning.
Education – Greater than 50,000 square feet
New Mexico School for the Arts
Owner: New Mexico School for the Arts Institute
General Contractor: Klinger Constructors
Architect: Studio Southwest Architects
Engineers: Bohannan Huston, BG Buildingworks, Luchini Trujillo
Phase 1 of development for the NMSA campus is a revitalized beginning to the adaptive-reuse of the historic Sanbusco Market space. NMSA’s new campus includes renovated and new construction for multi-use academic, administrative, and performing arts spaces. The new home for NMSA embraces the character of the historic Sanbusco market. The original lumber yard became the school’s Paseo, which feeds to classrooms and studios while doubling as the school main gathering space. The original lumber yard office hosts visual art exhibitions while art studios occupy the north of the Paseo; music studios occupy the tilt-wall shell of an old Borders Books, using the mass and height to reinforce the spaces’ acoustical needs. The front entry planters and berms provide protection in the urban setting. The integration of varying finishes, materials, and interior levels are all stitched together to create ADA access and serve as a reminder of the buildings’ history.
Medical
New Mexico Orthopaedics at Winrock
Owner: New Mexico Orthopaedics Associates, James Jones
General Contractor: Insight Construction
Architect: SCOUT Architecture + Design
Engineer: BG Buildingworks, Mosher, Walla Engineering
New Mexico Orthopaedics relocated from the sixth floor of Presbyterian Main Hospital to the old Montgomery Ward building at Winrock Shopping Center. Its new 68,000-square-foot space includes 78 exam rooms and two procedure rooms for its 50 medical providers, 8 X-ray machines, MRI suite that runs 16 hours every day, physical therapy, administrative area for all locations and the Motion Shop retail space. Additionally, NMO needed ample parking to accommodate over 700 patients and 250 staff per day. NMO focused on transforming the patient experience by revisioning the “office visit.” The design of the space is organized to emphasize intuitive wayfinding in support of their new patient workflow, implement state of the art technology, capitalize on mountain views and natural light and showcase the existing iconic concrete structure.
Office
Santa Fe County Administrative Complex and Historic Renovation
Owner: Santa Fe County
General Contractor: Jaynes Corp.
Architect: Studio Southwest Architects
Engineers: Bohannan Huston, AC Engineering, Chavez-Grieves Consulting Engineers, M7E Engineering
The new two-story, 60,000-square-foot office building is located at the former Judicial Complex site at the corner of Grant Avenue and Catron 
Street. This project also includes a parking solution that utilizes the natural grade change in the site, providing the county with 200 much-needed spaces. An additional aspect of this project scope is the historic restoration of the John Gaw Meem building at 100 Grant Ave. This phase of work involves the demolition of a 1970s era courtyard infill, modernization of office spaces, addition of ADA accessibility requirements, and preservation of other historic elements within the building. The Santa Fe County Administration building site is nestled between the newly built convention center, a high-density condominium neighborhood, and a historic church. The design team paid very careful attention to the impact this facility would have on the surrounding neighborhood, designing the massing to step-back from the street, lessening the scale at the pedestrian level.
Retail
Electric Playhouse Tenant Improvement
Owner: Brandon Garrett
Developer: Geltmore
General Contractor: Enterprise Builders
Architect: Dekker/Perich/Sabatini
Engineers: Arsed Engineering Group, LLC; The Response Group, Inc.; Dekker/Perich/Sabatini
Electric Playhouse gamifies the built environment, no special headsets or controllers are needed in this touch-free and interactive space. Content is 
tailored to time-based demographics with educational content during school hours, all ages family entertainment in the afternoons/weekends, and late-night 21 and over concerts and events. Party rooms feature large interactive tables that power chef-driven immersive dinners and parties. True to the model of converting vacant big box retail locations, the team repurposed a vacant 24,000-square-foot Staples building. The project stayed within its budget of $1.8 million with a majority of the project cost associated with the addition of a full commercial kitchen and the added electrical systems needed to support the technological magic that energizes the Playhouse. The construction process was uncommon; a majority of the walls serve as projection screens requiring a large amount of coordination to ensure these walls were kept clear of outlets and controls.
