The Metropole Building in Seattle’s Pioneer Square had been vacant for 17 years when the Satterberg Foundation brought us in to assess its potential. Open to the weather, damaged by multiple earthquakes and fire, with collapsed upper floors and deteriorating masonry facades, it was a building most would have written off. But the Foundation saw an opportunity to create a permanent, affordable home for nonprofit organizations serving Seattle’s BIPOC communities, and to demonstrate that historic preservation, climate leadership, and social equity don’t have to be competing priorities.
Start With the Community
Before design, we spent 12 months in community engagement. Over 15 events—focus groups, virtual meetings, and in-person interviews with community advocates, nonprofit organizations, and local residents—we asked a straightforward question: what do you actually need to live and work in downtown Seattle?
The answers drove the program directly. The highest-expressed need was affordable child care, followed by shared office space, conference and event facilities, a commercial kitchen for meal programs, and venues for arts and culture.
Nonprofit organizations now occupy shared office floors with common break areas, non-gendered restrooms, and flexible layouts. A child care center, community kitchen, arts and culture spaces, a conference and event center, and a rooftop terrace round out the program. Rents are structured to remain affordable for organizations led by and serving historically marginalized communities—groups increasingly at risk of displacement from Seattle’s downtown core.
The program reflects a growing shift in workplace design: from isolated tenant spaces to shared, mission-driven environments that support collaboration across organizations. For many of the nonprofits here, access to amenities like a conference and event center or a commercial kitchen would simply not be possible on their own. Shared infrastructure makes it viable, and in doing so, helps keep occupancy costs affordable for the organizations that need it most.
Repair, Restore, Transform
The physical scope was substantial. We restored the historic carved sandstone and brick masonry facades, reconstructed the cornice, rebuilt two collapsed upper floors, replaced the adjacent street retaining wall and elevated sidewalk structure, and integrated a complete seismic retrofit throughout.
Our design approach was one of care and restraint. Rather than covering the building’s history, we let the interiors celebrate it: historic cast iron columns, timber framing, original stone, and brick are all left exposed, minimizing the addition of new finish materials. A conference table was fabricated from old-growth Douglas fir timbers salvaged directly from the building’s structure. Where we introduced new elements, we did so deliberately: a fire-rated glass-enclosed stairwell connects all office levels to the rooftop, encouraging movement and interaction among tenants, and a wood curtainwall system brings light into the building while respecting its historic character.
Climate Performance
The Metropole achieved LEED Platinum certification with an Energy Use Intensity of 18—less than half the average for comparable building types, and among the lowest of any building type in Seattle. Compared to the current Seattle building code, the project achieves a 65% reduction in annual energy use and a 40% reduction in potable water use.
The mechanical system uses air-to-water heat pumps, driving hydronic radiant heating and passive chilled beam cooling. No fossil fuels are used onsite. Natural ventilation is integrated operationally: an LED display in each space cues occupants to open or close windows in coordination with the HVAC system. Triple-glazed wood windows and curtainwall, photovoltaic arrays with battery storage, low-flow fixtures, and drought-tolerant landscaping all contribute to overall performance. Extensive reuse of original building materials further minimizes embodied carbon, and bike storage, showers, and proximity to multi-modal transit support alternative commuting.
We treated material selection with equal rigor. Every product was vetted to eliminate Red List chemicals that are commonly found in building products. In a building where nonprofit staff, community members, and young children spend their days, occupant health isn’t a secondary concern. For communities that already bear a disproportionate burden of environmental health risks, it’s a meaningful part of the equity commitment.
Beyond Restoration
After three years of community engagement, design, and permitting, followed by three years of construction, the Metropole is the most complex adaptive reuse project our office has undertaken. It also reflects a broader shift in how we think about workplace environments. Rather than defaulting to new construction, adaptive reuse offers a path to reduce environmental impact while preserving cultural and architectural heritage. At the same time, it opens the door to more inclusive and flexible workplace models, particularly in urban centers where affordability remains a critical challenge.
For architects, designers, and workplace strategists, the lessons are clear. The future of the workplace will not be defined by a single typology or solution, but by our ability to adapt—reusing what we have, engaging the communities we serve, and designing spaces that perform at both a human and environmental level.
Editor’s Note: Matt Aalfs, AIA, Partner, is the founder of BuildingWork, where he leads the design of civic, community, adaptive reuse and historic preservation projects that advance environmental, cultural and social impact.
