This new home for the Helena Symphony is a vision to revitalize the Ming Opera House to once again be a vibrant hub of community activity for downtown Helena.
Size
35,567 sf (e), 765 sf (new)
Client
Helena Symphony Orchestra
Features
Event (banquet) Hall
Performance Hall
Public Meeting Rooms
Business/Retail
The existing Ming Opera House and Light & Traction Building (Project Ming.) are historic figures for downtown Helena. Over the past 40 years several studies have been conducted to revitalize this facility. As this new vision looks to revitalize Project Ming. as the new home of the Helena Symphony, extensive research was conducted on the history and current conditions so as to reimagine and re-use, not simply restore, the facility.
After site conditions are recorded, an existing model was created to further analyze design opportunities. In a unique characteristic of previous remodels, the floors between the two buildings are unaligned. This causes disorientation when circulating between the two and becomes a life-safety concern with public use. Including a new entry with an addition needed by the Helena Symphony creates a possibility to resolve this concern. This addition is able to not only improve street-front walkability of downtown Helena, but also resolve circulation by making use of a currently disregarded “wedge” space between the buildings. to improve the functionality of the facility as a whole.
Building integrated programing derived from workshop goals
Brief project narrative here. Placeholder text from previous materials follows. Mosaic is a collaboration of creative and seasoned architects who passionately pursue design appropriate solutions. Our Montana roots help to guide our project approach and decision making through a culture of hard work and a deep appreciation of environment and home.
