A Building for the Ages: 2072 Addison St, Berkeley

A building’s design and architectural style will leave an impact for years to come.

Poorly designed architecture will cheapen the look and feel of a neighborhood, while a thoughtfully constructed building can accentuate the surrounding architecture. The latter will be the case for 2072 Addison, a new mixed-use building in the Berkeley Arts district that is developed by Ruegg & Ellsworth, designed by Kirk Peterson Associates (KPA), and constructed by ECS Corp and Conco.

2072 Addison pays respect to Berkeley’s timeless character.

As developers who were born in Berkeley, Dave Ruegg and Bob Ellsworth wanted 2072 Addison to respect their hometown with a historical design. Through their business, Ruegg & Ellsworth, they shared their vision with architects Kirk Peterson and Mike Tracy at KPA. Once the design was finalized, ECS was brought in as the general contractor, who in turn approached Conco to build the structure with a cost-efficient design-build approach. Conco then contracted Hoogerwerf & Associates to develop the structural plans.

KPA chose a concrete façade for its versatility and design flexibility. Using concrete as a medium, ECS contracted Conco to build the formwork, and pump and place the concrete. Conco used a combination of casting concrete in place and using shotcrete, a type of concrete that is sprayed onto walls at high velocity. The result is a beautiful exterior with a mix of Roman features and delicate and chunky elements that befit any structure in the Arts district. It’s no wonder that the Berkeley city planners embraced the design.

Construction is a feat of skill and collaboration.

Building great structures takes a combination of vision, design, and execution that can only be accomplished with a skilled owner, architect, and structural engineer. Together, they transform their visions into working designs for the general contractor and subcontractors, like Conco, to execute. Conco is proud to have played a part in creating the finished product, and are thankful to work with a fantastic team.