Urban Outfitters
101-107 Post Road East
This property lies between Post Road and Church Lane and is directly adjacent to the old Westport Bank and Trust Building. The 13,880 SF lot contains three structures; 101 and 107 Post Road East (PRE) and the Sherwood Mansion, built in 1820 and famously relocated in 2014 to its new resting place on Church Lane.
We designed a two story, 800 SF footprint addition to 107 PRE and proposed the challenging process of relocating the Sherwood Mansion. This addition of 1,600 SF to the Church Lane and Post Road levels was made possible by removing the uppermost level of 101 and 107 PRE. Trading the undesirable and logistically challenging third floor allowed the modern addition which awakened the Church Lane facade, sucessfully creating an interesting dialogue between old and new. It also transformed an inferior low-ceilinged retail floor into a soaring exploration of an old building.
Our initial intent was to renovate these three structures, allowing them to readily accommodate new commercial uses and contribute to the overall vitality of the downtown area. We aimed to enhance the neighborhood’s development in ways that were consistent with the Westport Town plan and by revitalizing the Sherwood Mansion we were able to maintain the existing rhythm and streetscape of Church Lane in doing so. The addition of the public plaza bridges the transition from the smaller-scale, timber residential structures to the larger-scale masonry structures of 101, 107 PRE and the Westport Bank and Trust Building (now Patagonia) and also creates a much-needed pedestrian connection between the Post Road and Church Lane. The exterior façade treatments proposed for 101 and 107 PRE are intended to reinforce this transition while supporting the new retail uses within. The proposed renovation drawings resulted in a completed lease before construction had even began
