Integrated by Design
The success of the First Bank project can be attributed to our core belief that the design process should be fully integrated—inclusive of landscape, interior, and architecture along with the client from the very beginning—to bring forward the most innovative and sustainable solutions.
First Bank is a long-standing, family-owned financial institution that wanted to re-imagine its headquarters to focus on the well-being of its workforce and clients. LJC designed this forward-thinking courtyard-style office building that blurs the line between landscape and interiors, offering flexibility and choice to the individual employee throughout the day.
On the heels of the coronavirus pandemic, the site design became integral to the overall design intent, reflecting the dramatic changes in the workplace since 2020. The site design concept was strongly informed by its context, site analysis, and cross-discipline collaboration between landscape architecture, architecture, interiors, engineering, and traffic.
Once inside the building, guests are welcomed into an open lobby. Just beyond, a glass atrium engages a four-story monumental staircase with daylit views to an exterior courtyard. The interior program features open offices to allow ample daylight from all sides to flow into the core and give each desk a view of the landscape or the lush courtyard.
Volume & Mass
The initial mass is positioned to occupy as much of the site as possible, while carefully aligning its faces to the bounding streets. The volume maintains as much frontage and visibility as possible southward to Olive Boulevard. The volume is first carved to create space for a partially open courtyard, oriented south toward Olive Boulevard. In doing so, natural light penetrates even more of the interior and provides more opportunities for the program to engage with the natural environment.
Sculpt
The volume is then sculpted to provide unique opportunities for the user to engage with the architecture. The outdoor patio and rooftop bridge deepen the programmatic connection to the natural environment in the creation of usable outdoor space. Additionally, the scheme’s most engaging architectural gestures are oriented south toward an active Olive Boulevard.
Circulation
The interior building circulation is designed for optimal connectivity and well-being. A loop circulation connects people to amenities while visually integrating the courtyard across all levels. A central vertical open stair promotes wellness by facilitating movement and communication between floors, fostering a dynamic and cohesive environment.
Skin
The singular, comprehensive curtain wall system unifies the volume and features a ceramic frit that provides character and reduces the heat load of the envelope. The landscape design activates the site, both outside and within, as a fluid extension of the interior architectural design.
From Old to New
The distinct columns and arches of the 40,000 SF former headquarters have been a longstanding fixture of Olive Boulevard since 1967, and the organization wanted their new home to be just as unique. First Bank made a plan to consolidate this office’s 74 employees with two other offices in the region in a new 85,000 SF, 4-story office. Situated at the gateway to Creve Coeur, the First Bank site is a prominent presence for those traveling eastbound on Olive Boulevard from Interstate 270.
Vision & Goals
Generational Impact
This project is the next step in First Bank's legacy of helping family-owned businesses for generations to come. First Bank intends to continue to improve the lives of not only their clients, but of their family of employees and future collaborators as well.
Connection to Outdoors
Create a sustainability-forward building that enhances the workplace socially and experientially by fostering a strong connection to the outdoors. Provide an opportunity to work in a range of outdoor spaces.
Future of the Workplace
First Bank is committed to building a work environment that fosters a strong culture, while acknowledging that the future of the workplace also includes flexibility, hybrid-options, and a focus on wellness.
World-Class Design
Create a timeless, enduring building that connects with the city and region and gains recognition at a local, regional, and national scale. The design should maximize resources, minimize environmental impact, and adapt to future technologies over time.
Wellness in Design
As wellness and flexibility in the workplace became a key priority for the team following the pandemic, First Bank’s new home was designed to offer a range of working environments with a strong relationship to the outdoors. Most working spaces have either a direct physical or visual connection to the courtyard. The courtyard also offers a range of seating options for independent and collaborative work, and power is embedded here as well as on the bridge and patio spaces on the third and fourth floors.
Level 1
Lobby
Core
Neighborhood
Cafe & Innovation Hub
Loading Dock
Affluent Client Space
Level 2
Neighborhoods
Collaboration Space
Core
Level 3
Neighborhoods
Collaboration Space
Core
Family Room
Level 4
Neighborhoods
Leasable Tenant Space
Client Lounge
Core
Hospitality Terrace
Courtyard Landscaping
The courtyard is embraced by the building but sheltered from the road, creating opportunities for outdoor dining and working as well as year-round views of nature. An upper plaza and a lower plaza, concrete pavers, custom seat walls, topography adjustments, and native and adapted plants work in unison to create a series of flexible outdoor rooms.
Atop the building lay two green roof amenity decks that provide additional opportunities for exterior gathering, working, and entertaining while remaining true to resilient planting design and habitat creation. Sustainable stormwater principles are used throughout the site, while native and adapted species provide horticultural interest and habitat.
Workplace Organization
The client wanted a forward-thinking workplace design that was varied, flexible, and promoted collaboration. Rather than organize each floor into large singular workspaces, each wing
of the building is broken down into smaller “neighborhoods.” This introduces a wider range of working and collaboration spaces and encourages team-driven work. Each neighborhood features its own material palette and is composed of various modules that facilitate specific working and collaboration styles.
Bank Branch & Personal Banking Suite
It was important to design a luxurious user experience for the most public-facing program of the new headquarters, the bank branch, and the affluent client suite. The intent was to design an experience that best communicated First Bank’s values and offered comfort, hospitality, and privacy. The bank branch and ITM station are located in the southwest branch of the building and are highly visible from the lobby. The more private affluent client suite is situated beyond the ITM stations in the southernmost corner of the building.
Strengthen Culture
Social and "Refresh" Space
Increase Engagement
Meeting and Collaboration
Magnify Performance
Individual and Group Work
Grow Impact
Retail Bank and Client Management
Site Design
Programming
