Ring that defines and embraces. The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture
03/03/2023.
[Bingen - Washington] USA
metalocus, ANA SAIZ
metalocus, ANA SAIZ
The new Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture is located in Bingen, Washington, in the Columbia River Gorge, a National Scenic Area. The hotel is within a residential area, separated from the waterfront by a series of industrial facilities. The design of the building is based on the objective of enhancing its relationship with the spectacular natural landscape while seeking to mitigate its impact on the environment.
The original building was built in 1903 and rebuilt in 1937, it has 10 private standard rooms and two 24-bed hostels, as well as a library in the reception area, lockers in the corridor and a renovated gym open for guest use. The requested program was the rehabilitation of the old building, and the construction of twenty hotel cabins, a covered path and a spa building.
The original building was built in 1903 and rebuilt in 1937, it has 10 private standard rooms and two 24-bed hostels, as well as a library in the reception area, lockers in the corridor and a renovated gym open for guest use. The requested program was the rehabilitation of the old building, and the construction of twenty hotel cabins, a covered path and a spa building.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
Location plan. The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture.
Site plan. The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture.
General plan. The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture.
Ground floor plan. The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture.
Sections. The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture.
The rehabilitation of the original building was approached as a slight touch-up, rescuing the original floors. The main intervention proposed by Waechter Architecture consisted in the creation of a ring formed by individual cabins joined by the roof, which cantilevered giving rise to a covered path. The spa located in the middle of the ring serves as central meeting space. This building opens towards the four sides of the ring; inside, a large skylight sheds light onto the pools below. Four large piers flank this space, while also housing more private areas within, such as changing rooms, sauna, kitchen, and massage rooms.
At the same time that the ring of cabins defines a patio inside, it serves as a frame to frame the landscape that surrounds it. Also, this new perimeter provides a delimitation between the neighborhood and the hotel, this barrier is clear but permeable, and maintains the residential scale of the environment. Society Hotel Bingen reconciles the needs of the site and the users, enhancing the views towards the landscape, respecting the place and defining a quality common interior space.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.At the same time that the ring of cabins defines a patio inside, it serves as a frame to frame the landscape that surrounds it. Also, this new perimeter provides a delimitation between the neighborhood and the hotel, this barrier is clear but permeable, and maintains the residential scale of the environment. Society Hotel Bingen reconciles the needs of the site and the users, enhancing the views towards the landscape, respecting the place and defining a quality common interior space.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
Project description by Waechter Architecture
The Society Hotel Bingen in Bingen, Washington confronts conflicting contextual drivers, responding with a singular and iconic organization. Located in the Columbia River Gorge - a National Scenic Area - the project’s site is near the waterfront yet separated from it by a series of industrial facilities. Further complicating the hotel’s relationship to the dramatic landscape of the Gorge, the 1 ha (2,57 acre) property is within a residential setting requiring a sensitivity to scale and the privacy of its neighbors. Attempting to maximize the relationship of the hotel to its natural context while buffering its impact on its surroundings, the design explores the concept of the “edited panorama.” Using the massing of the new hotel to edit out the middle ground view, the connection between the foreground hotel courtyard and the background grandeur of the Gorge is heightened and experientially linked.
The client’s program consisted of four distinct, yet related components: the adaptive reuse of a former school, twenty hotel cabins, a covered pathway, and a spa building. Approaching the renovation of the school with a light touch, the primary design intervention became the reorganization of the cabins, pathway, and spa to create a larger figure on the school’s former play fields. In this solution, the individual cabins form a ring that loosely defines the edge of the site. While each living unit is detached on the ground, they are united through a shared roof that cantilevers out to double as a covered walkway and porches for the cabins.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
Originally built in 1903 and rebuilt in 1937 following a fire, the nearly 90-year-old Bingen Schoolhouse offers 10 private standard rooms and two 24-bed hostels, as well as a library in the reception area, lockers in the hallway and a refurbished gym open to guest use. The floors are all original to the building and a combination of existing or salvaged from the former classrooms to get the entire lobby to match.
The ring of cabins defines a shared courtyard. With its connected roof, this ring acts as a frame, allowing views both between the cabins and upward to the sky and hills. Visitors are presented with a double perspective—the close view of the courtyard’s garden and the far view of the landscape—to provide a sense of retreat, even in a town setting. At the same time, this new perimeter of cabins provides a clear delineation between the neighborhood and hotel, while maintaining a residential scale and avoiding a monolithic barrier between communities.
The Society Hotel Bingen by Waechter Architecture. Photograph by Lara Swimmer.
Within the ring, a community spa building serves as a central gathering space with shared amenities for the hotel’s visitors. The spa maintains the same material palette to the surrounding cabins, yet has a distinctly volumetric form. Avoiding a singular front entrance, the building instead opens onto each side of the ring. On its interior, the structure expands upward to a large skylight, which washes light over a series of pools below. Four large piers shape this collective space, while additionally containing more private areas, including changing rooms, sauna, kitchen, and massage rooms.
Through the strategic placement of elements, the Society Hotel Bingen reconciles the competing needs of site and users. Maximizing views outward, while being respectful neighbors, the design consolidates the disparate programmatic elements into a singular form that both defines an internal community space and embraces its surrounding environment.
More information
Architects
Waechter Architecture. Principal in charge.- Ben Baechter. Project lead.- Alexis Kurland.
Collaborators
Interior Design and Landscape.- Blossom.
Site Management.- Orange Construction.
Sanctuary Design and Consultant.- Formworks Building.
Site Management.- Orange Construction.
Sanctuary Design and Consultant.- Formworks Building.
Client
The Society Hotel.
Location
Bingen, Washington, USA.
Photography
Ben Waechter. Waechter Architecture
Waechter Architecture (WA) is an interdisciplinary design practice based in Portland, Oregon, USA, founded by Ben Waechter architect, in 2008.
Ben Waechter worked locally and internationally with leaders in architecture including Allied Works Architecture (Portland, OR) and world-renowned architect Renzo Piano (Genoa, Italy). Ben is an award-winning and published designer whose principles lie in providing bold forms arrived at through exercises in concept, distillation, and intelligent programming. His experience includes a wide range of building types: cultural, hospitality, commercial, and multi-family and single-family residential.
In 2019, the Architecture League of New York recognized the firm with its Emerging Voices Award, and in 2022, Waechter Architecture received the Firm Award from AIA Northwest & Pacific Region.
Ben Waechter worked locally and internationally with leaders in architecture including Allied Works Architecture (Portland, OR) and world-renowned architect Renzo Piano (Genoa, Italy). Ben is an award-winning and published designer whose principles lie in providing bold forms arrived at through exercises in concept, distillation, and intelligent programming. His experience includes a wide range of building types: cultural, hospitality, commercial, and multi-family and single-family residential.
In 2019, the Architecture League of New York recognized the firm with its Emerging Voices Award, and in 2022, Waechter Architecture received the Firm Award from AIA Northwest & Pacific Region.
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