Meeting multiple wants and needs ...
The developers, Frauenshuh Companies, wanted an economical building that would get the best use from the square footage. The block played a key role in St. Paul’s downtown master plan, and the City wanted the municipal parking ramp to blend in and provide retail space. Lawson Software needed it to be high-tech and highly functional. Bill Lawson – cofounder, chairman and CEO of Lawson Software and himself a St. Paul native – also wanted his company’s new urban headquarters to integrate smoothly into the culture and values of the historic neighborhood. And finally, the design team wanted to create a building that would be welcomed by the people of St. Paul.

"One of our challenges was to tie the building into the historic neighborhood and still express the ‘high-tech/high-touch’ characteristics of Lawson Software." – BWBR Architects Design Team