Elite Family Services – APS Panels

Mid-Century Architect Fred Guirey was considered “The Father of Our Roadside Rest Areas” by Arizona Highways. Guirey and his firm, Guirey, Srnka & Arnold received the commission in 1961, as architect, to design the Arizona Public Service (APS) administrative building in Deer Valley. The most noteworthy feature of the building was the precast concrete panels attached to the exterior and used to shade the entire glass façade. The panels feature flame and lightning motifs, appropriate for a power company.

Over the next 60 years, panels over the walkway developed hairline cracks, making them a safety hazard. With safety in mind, APS had those panels removed. In 2022, APS decided to renovate its building and as a result of prohibitive cost to replicate the panels, decided the landfill was a likely destination for the remaining 325,000 pounds of precast panels.

As an advocate for the preservation of historic elements in architecture and specifically those developed in Arizona, 180 Degrees Design + Build stepped in to salvage the remaining 86 of the 106 panels from the landfill. Carrying the cost of salvage, the team had a vision to utilize these unique and expensive panels in various projects around the valley. Allowing both new and renovation projects the benefit of a unique opportunity at a very low cost.

The client embarked on an adaptive reuse of a vacant retail center with a limited budget. A component of the program required a new image for the façade of a rather mundane tilt-panel building and allowance for sun mitigation into the eastern façade during the summer when activity in the space was high. The project team suggested a floating façade of the 18 pre-cast panels allowing for a unique, budget conscious solution. A solution that not only met programmatic needs but continued our effort to limit waste to landfills.