FROM DISCOVERY TO FEASIBILITY
Every successful project begins with a clear vision. Bringing that vision to life however, from ethereal to construction-ready, requires foresight and a sophisticated, aligned team. MIN+ led early-stage project development for a large community-focused wellness initiative that was the brainchild of a solopreneur. We helped answer questions like how big the facility should be, what kind of real estate, community context & solar orientation are ideal, and who are the essential consultants? We worked with a preconstruction GC, non-profit marketing team and economic development experts to estimate the hard and soft cost budgets that supported the vision. As a final product, MIN+ produced and compiled all the graphic assets needed to convey the dream for fundraising.
Programming
Programming starts from a real understanding of function, need and narrative. We define the project parameters and outline how the programmatic needs translate into spatial diagrams that test size and adjacencies, interpreting the program into three-dimensional spatial diagrams with solar orientation, access considerations, and indoor/outdoor space relationships.
Each programmatic and spatial element is defined both functionally and experientially.
Space planning includes volumetric analysis to create a composition of three dimensional puzzle pieces.
CONCEPT DESIGN
With the program defined, concept design gives the client vision architectural form and ethos. The desired look and feel are explored in the broadest sense, focusing on how the building is experienced. This work starts with the 2D graphic identity, iterated through material, light, form and texture to find compositional and emotive alignment with the client’s vision. These conceptual iterations help to define the project’s construction in quantifiable terms that can serve as the basis for cost estimating to ensure the aspirational vision is grounded in the reality of cost considerations.
Investor Deck
Once the project narrative and concept design are defined, we worked closely with our client to build a visual storytelling deck to communicate the vision to stakeholders.
Site Selection
Our programming work defines the ideal building size, breaks down essential outdoor and indoor connections, and sets a rubric for how the building needs to function. This information provides the criteria needed to guide site selection. Once a site is selected, the investor deck and concept plans are refined to reflect it.
Pre-construction efforts
Our pre-construction work includes collaboration with consultants specializing in economic development, market analysis, non-profit fundraising, and construction cost. MIN+’s concept design work – the program, initial concept plans, and a written narrative – form the basis of a feasibility study, which in turns serves to inform a preliminary pricing outline. For construction cost estimating, we connect clients with a trusted general contractor, whose input is folded into the same feasibility study. In addition, we identify any specialty consultants who may be needed, so their fees are accounted for during these early soft cost planning phase. This early synthesizing allows the development team to build out the project proforma, test feasibility, and identify the financing needed to move the project from visioning to reality.
This proposed health and wellness facility is designed around a glass-roofed indoor garden at its heart, making sunlight, greenery, and community connection central to healing. Beyond natural light as a healing element, the project includes spa, educational, recreational, and event facilities. The core ethos of this community wellness initiative is that restorative space shouldn’t be a luxury commodity, but a necessity accessible to all members of the community: a place where a neighborhood can gather, heal, and find belonging together.
Project Imagery provided by MIN+ Architecture