County Schools Federal Credit Union
When County Schools Credit Union made the decision to trade their 8,000sf main office and branch for a 2,332sf space, they faced the daunting challenge of meeting all of their needs in less than a third of their former space. With a project small in physical scale but large in complexity, County Schools turned to TruEdge to help them do more with a lot less.
The Challenges
Multifunctional design
The new space had to accommodate retail, administrative and operations functions, with a clear separation between the retail and administrative areas. That meant finding ways for every part of the building to be multifunctional without sacrificing efficiency, security or safety.
Full Renovation
Sometimes an existing space has enough potential to warrant a refresh or update. Other times-as was the case with County Schools-a full, ground-up renovation is the only way to achieve all objectives. A full renovation provided the opportunity to make major structural changes to the 1960’s building to bring it up to date, create flexible spaces and accommodate ADA requirements.
Optimizing Vertical Space
When designing lobby spaces, one of our interior design objectives is to differentiate it with a higher ceiling than the rest of the space. Unfortunately, in this case the existing roof joists wouldn’t allow for this. TruEdge worked closely with County Schools to arrive at a customized solution. We provided renderings of several options and made recommendations to help our client feel confident in their decision making.
Complex projects demand the tight collaboration of a variety of subject matter experts. TruEdge’s Interior Designers, Architects, Graphic Designers, Construction Managers, Superintendents, Estimators and Project Engineers worked seamlessly as a team to realize the client’s vision. Consolidating space and functions in a full remodel with limited ceilings brought many challenges, but our cross-functional team worked diligently to solve them all.
The Solutions
From Dated to Dazzling: A Complete Transformation
County Schools Credit Union decided to sell their 8,000sf headquarters and branch building in Ventura, CA, and operate out of a more efficient space. With a limited budget, they purchased a smaller, older building that needed a great deal of work. They turned to TruEdge to meet the challenge of making the new space functional, branded and aesthetically pleasing.
The initial challenge was devising a plan to fit all the functionality of a full branch plus administrative space into just 2,332sf. This included two tellers, two member service representative stations, a private branch manager’s office, ATM room and spaces for a four-person admin staff. Also needed were a board room, branch meeting room, restrooms, breakroom and storage.
TruEdge created several conceptual test fits before landing on a preferred option, which they retooled until everything fit perfectly. The final design included retractable bifold doors that allowed the boardroom to serve as a private conference room, and also be opened to the lobby for larger gatherings and special events.
To implement the plan, the entire space had to be demolished. Several structural columns were relocated, and the roofing and eaves were replaced. A new entry façade was added and the glass storefront entrance was adjusted. The building did not previously have an HVAC system, so one was installed. The entire electrical system needed to be replaced and upgraded. Natural lighting was an issue, so sun tunnels were installed in areas that didn’t have exterior windows. Lastly, several ADA requirements were triggered, including a new trenched out path of travel from the parking lot.
Special consideration had to be given to the limited ceiling height of 10 feet. Our design build team worked thoughtfully to maximize the space in the retail area so every bit of the height could be maintained. An open ceiling concept was used in which the ceiling was placed between rafters and ductwork was run on top of the roof, then dropped straight down where diffusers were needed.
“The new County Schools Credit Union main office and branch, though small in physical scale, demanded the collaboration of every role within TruEdge. It was an exhilarating project to work on: Together, the team met some very difficult challenges with a level of innovation that only comes when many minds working in concert to make the whole greater than the sum of its parts.”
– Drew Learned, President and CEO
