Fresno, CA. USGBC Central California is excited to congratulate Lee Miyamoto on winning First Place and Dayle Edinborough on winning second place in the 2024 Adaptive Reuse Design Competition. The competition was held by USGBC Central California and sponsored by AARP for local students in the region. Construction, engineering, and design students were invited to submit proposals.

Students were invited to share their ideas and find unique ways to adaptively reuse the existing Nippon 2 building in the Japanese part of Fresno’s Chinatown while incorporating decarbonization, heat island reduction, and social infrastructure strategies. The building has been empty for years and does not conform to current code regulations. This area of Fresno has been getting lots of attention recently, due to the development of a High-Speed Rail Station which will have an entrance facing Chinatown, and the rising housing costs leaving many residents in need of shelter. The 2024 Adaptive Reuse Design Competition highlights the opportunities in using underused buildings to serve the needs of a town with an aging population.

Historical backgrounds, neighborhoods, and land demographics were considered when designing the new repurposed property. The designs focused on the needs of an aging population with an average age of 50 and accessible for all people regardless of disability or social status.

The project brought together many partners to develop guidelines and evaluate the submissions, including the Mayor’s office, City of Fresno Economic Development Department, Fresno State Interior Design Department, Gazarian Real Estate Center, Chinatown Foundation, and AARP to make this visioning project a reality.

Our Adaptive Reuse Design Competition winners were announced during the USGBC Central California’s Design Showcase and Holiday Party, which took place on the 10th floor of The Grand 1401, only a couple blocks away from the existing Nippon 2 building in the Japanese part of Fresno's Chinatown. Winners were picked anonymously, and their names were not shown to judges before the competition or when judging their proposals at any time.

Adaptive Reuse is one of the greenest ways a building can make a green impact. Using existing buildings for new usage is key, as it reduces waste, saves materials, extends the useful life of buildings, preserves culture, articulates heritage, and most importantly transforms underused spaces for communities.