After 20 years of being occupants and landlords at our South Third Street Office in downtown Columbus, the RKA Principals sold the building. The New RKA Office is located in the historic Lilley Building, one block east of the Ohio Statehouse, in the heart of downtown Columbus. After looking at many downtown building options, the Lilley Building met our criteria for the type of space and location we were looking for. This raw, loft-style space came with a large open floor area, high ceilings, large windows, ample daylight, views of the city, exposed brick, and exposed steel structural elements. Our simple material palette includes recycled content mdf and carpet tiles, FSC maple, painted original structural steel elements, and exposed original brick.

An open studio was created in the main space, with custom-designed mdf/maple workstations arranged in a modular layout, driven directly by the existing structural steel column grid and beams, and the east wall window spacing. Three formerly enclosed offices were converted into two conference rooms. A new custom-designed, geometric, maple-framed interior window opens up the large conference room and connects to daylight and views. A break area was created with a large kitchen and seating provided at an RKA custom-designed table. Custom area rugs were created throughout the space, utilizing recycled content carpet tiles. New energy-efficient LED lighting was provided throughout the space. Minimal interventions were required to make this space function well for the RKA Team, providing a creative new home for the firm, while conforming to a tight project budget and schedule.