Feliciana Place

This mixed-use residential/commercial project is a remodel of a Downtown Albuquerque icon, the Royal Fork Restaurant- who’s sign still stands as a nostalgic nod to the site’s past life and the importance of iconic signage in the Albuquerque Area. Situated at the gateway between the downtown business district and the historic barrio of Barelas, the project serves to enliven what was until recently a desolate barrier between two communities. The project is a logical extension of the work GSL had done on 4th Street and Coal Avenue., projects that were revitalizations of key urban corridors having profound effects on community and professional life in the area. Royal Fork sits at the intersection of the two streets. Preservation of this early post-war building creates a dialogue within the urban core which years of neglect and gentrification had erased. The building was stripped to a structural shell for 3 commercial spaces and 6 residential units, maintaining the formal, raw presence of the structure while making strategic insertions of refined construction and surfacing.