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As a proud San Antonio based firm, Lake|Flato is  honored to be a part of the design team for the San Antonio International Airport’s new terminal in partnership with Corgan Inc. The preliminary design will include a 17-gate expansion, more than 850,000 square feet of new terminal space, and a landscaped, riparian paseo between the curb and terminal that references the River Walk experience and tells the story of San Antonio’s creeks and spring-fed waterways. Outdoor courtyards will showcase the Texas sun, and additional concession space will allow new shops and restaurants to thrive.

The airport is the doorstep to our beautiful city. The paseo, as you enter, will say you’ve arrived in San Antonio. We’re putting San Antonio on the map with every step of this much-needed project. We’re building a world-class airport to give people more options domestically and internationally.

– Mayor Ron Nirenberg

Read more about the preliminary design here. 

The Marine Education Center at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory has been named the season one winner of America by Design: Architecture, a television series produced by CBS that shines a spotlight on American architectural innovation, ingenuity, and design excellence to a broad audience. The competition brought together creative architectural projects from residences to skyscrapers, with an esteemed panel of judges comparing the merits of each. Impressed by how the Marine Education Center harmonizes with its surrounding environment through environmentally-sensitive design strategies that also support coastal resiliency and educational efforts, the judges unanimously selected the project as the season’s winner. This University of Southern Mississippi (USM) facility includes outdoor classrooms, laboratories, administration offices, assembly spaces, exhibition areas, and a pedestrian suspension bridge where researchers have an unparalleled opportunity to learn about the ecologically critical bayou and tidal wetlands of Mississippi.

Jessie Kastler, the Director of the Marine Education Center, hopes this recognition will encourage people to visit the center again or perhaps for the first time. “When they do visit or participate in an educational program, the recognition reinforces the concepts we teach about environmental sustainability and hazard resilience. It also brings attention to USM’s linked, multidisciplinary efforts to understand the ocean and coasts, improve coastal resilience and support the blue economy,” shares Kastler in this press release from USM.

We are honored to be recognized by our local AIA San Antonio chapter with 2022 Design Excellence Awards for the Holdsworth Center and Bridge House.

The Holdsworth Center demonstrates that "Education Holds Worth" and that educators are deserving of a place where they can grow their skills. Envisioned as a timeless destination that emphasizes a sense of community, the Holdsworth Center is a retreat for public educators that promotes reflection, thought and dialogue. As a new resource for world-class training and leadership development for Texas’ public educators, the campus thoughtfully connects users to the native landscape and neighboring Lake Austin.    

Bridge House is a LEED for Homes Platinum house sited next to a private ravine that connects to Houston’s greater bayous and was designed as a place of respite within the city. By building on the existing footprint, protecting existing trees, harvesting geothermal energy for mechanical systems, collecting rainwater, and storing it underground in the existing pool cavity, Bridge House minimizes its environmental impact in innovative ways. Bridge House explores the use of a variety of bridges: a raised entry walkway through the site, a hanging bridge on the second floor of the house, and a walkway from the house to outdoor amenities and is aptly named for these exterior and interior bridges. The result is an artful, original, and sustainable home set within a peaceful natural environment.  
   

Congratulations to all the 2022 AIA San Antonio Award Winners! See the full list here. 

We are honored that three of our projects, the Holdsworth Center, Marfa Ranch, and Hotel Magdalena have been recognized with 2022 Chicago Athenaeum American Architecture Awards. These awards honor the best nationally and internationally significant new buildings, landscape architecture, and planning projects designed and built by the world’s leading architects.

The Holdsworth Center is a first-of-its-kind facility dedicated to the training and leadership development of Texas public educators demonstrating that "Education Holds Worth" and that educators deserve a place where they can grow their skills. Designed to encourage feelings of health and wellness, 84% of the site is dedicated to beneficial open spaces that also support water, wildlife, and ecological conservation. This living-learning programming thoughtfully connects visitors to the native landscape and neighboring Lake Austin in a healthy, sustainable, and resilient campus setting. 

Situated amongst the vast west Texas skies, majestic mountains, and active desert landscape, Marfa Ranch reflects Marfa’s unique environment and its artistic community. Embracing its ever-changing desert landscape by having the rooms centered around the courtyard, the structures connect users to the surrounding landscape. The house is built of two-foot-thick walls of rammed earth, placing regional materials at the forefront as a nod to how the area’s earliest structures were built while creating a high thermal mass ideal for Marfa’s climate.

Hotel Magdalena is an inviting oasis situated in one of Austin's most beloved neighborhoods. Its deeply shaded porches, inviting outdoor spaces and lushly planted terraces were thoughtfully designed to draw guests outdoors, connecting them with the courtyards and landscape. The result is a unique experience that pays homage to Hill Country Lake houses and the slopes of natural artesian springs in the region, where Texans have historically sought relief from the harsh summer heat. The Hotel has become a showcase of innovative design, sustainability, and sense of place within its urban environment. 

Click here to learn more about the 2022 American Architecture Awards.