AC Hotel

Leawood, KS

130 Key Hotel, Feasibility + Design Study
AC Hotel

Generator Studio was selected to analyze the feasibility and design of a new AC Hotel in an existing mixed-use development in Leawood, Kansas. The millennial focused AC Hotel brand intentionally has limited design standards, allowing developers and architects freedom to respond to context to create one of a kind environments for the modern hotel guest.

Critical factors for the siting of the hotel are the adjacent corporate headquarters building, associated parking garage, and steeply sloping but narrow site. Those factors combine to limit the hotel to a 60’ wide footprint; making efficiency, pedestrian friendly site circulation and vehicular access paramount to the design solution.

The design focuses on embracing the surroundings by establishing a large bar + lounge on the first floor. Ideally the bar would be patronized by visitors to the development and adjacent office workers in addition to hotel guests, making the lobby a true hospitality lounge in lieu of a traditional “pass through” space.

The exterior of the building is comprised of Taktl high performance precast concrete panels. The seemingly random facade layout is a delicately composed repetition of modular panels that can have glazing in place prior to being installed; expediting construction and reducing waste. The limited use of other façade materials maintains a simple material palette, true to both the tenets of the surrounding development and the AC Hotel brand.