726 Main Street Adaptive Reuse Office – Redwood City
Hayes Group Architects transformed the historic 726 Main Street into a modern office with transparency, contrasting materials, and adaptive reuse elements, celebrated for its innovative design by AIA.
Situated in an 1859 landmark building, 726 Main Street is a striking, modern office from Hayes Group Architects. For this adaptive reuse interiors project, the architecture and design team led by Ken Hayes, AIA integrated transparency and contrasting contemporary materials, while celebrating the richness of the historic structure’s original character.
Located in Redwood City, 726 Main Street was commissioned by Stormland Group, a premier land development firm in Silicon Valley. Its founder, a prominent commercial developer, envisioned a place for operating his business—focused on projects in the community—and for hosting events which bring together industry professionals for sharing ideas, making deals and meeting others.
Massive brick walls were left exposed, revealing centuries of patina of past use as a hardware store, a bank and a laundry. The existing redwood ceiling was repaired and refinished, and the floor was replaced with polished concrete.
The lighting strategy makes use of natural lighting — the existing windows and skylights flood the lounge and open areas, and the internal offices borrow the light through their floor to ceiling glass walls.
Hayes Group Architects divided the interior in two along the length of the building with a steel and leather-wrapped casework wall. Frameless glass permits light to pass freely between the acoustically private offices and conference room occupying one half and the lounge-like open space occupying the other. Standing millwork storage modules subdivide the open area into discrete programmatic zones for coworking, entertaining and taking breaks.
“Our client, Ed Storm is an exceptional real estate developer who appreciates modern architecture and design,” states Hayes whose namesake firm has entitled, designed and built more than 200 commercial projects in neighboring Menlo Park, and in Palo Alto for real estate developers and technology companies, as well as venture capital and law firms. Hayes notes that while the firm works on many ground up and interiors projects, adaptive reuse projects like 726 Main Street resonate with “our philosophy of solving client problems with innovative, scalable and practical architectural solutions.”
726 Main Street was selected for a 2024 Honor Award by the AIA San Mateo Chapter. The jury commented that the “…lighting is exceptionally well done…” and “…the whole project is beautifully detailed and intentional, from the curtains to the leather walls…”.
Design: Hayes Group Architects
Project Team: Stormland Group
Contractor: Cody Vermette Group
Photography: Patrik Argast
