An inside look at The Nature Conservancy’s new headquarters in Birmingham

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The Nature Conservancy in Alabama—the state chapter of the largest environmental nonprofit in the world—is constructing their new headquarters right here in Birmingham!

Bham Now took a tour of The Nature Conservancy in Alabama’s new headquarters with Williams Blackstock Architects to learn more about the project.

About The Nature Conservancy in Alabama

The Nature Conservancy is a global environmental organization that aims to take on complex environmental challenges around the world. Working in 79 countries and territories around the globe, The Nature Conservancy engages with local communities, governments, the private sector and other partners to conserve the land and waters that we depend on.

The organization’s state chapter—known as The Nature Conservancy in Alabama—was founded in 1989 and has four goals for the next five years:

• Securing clean water for our rivers so Alabamians can safely eat our native fish and seafood, enjoy swimming and boating and trust the water they drink.
• Building healthy and resilient lands that filter our water and provide wildlife habitat that can endure as our climate changes.
• Restore living habitats by leveraging deeper investments to restore living habitats like natural channels, oyster reefs and marshes that serve as a first line of defense for coastal communities.
• Advance conservation by inspiring and mobilizing Alabamians to advance conservation in communities across the state.

“The Nature Conservancy is the largest international environmental nonprofit in the world, with work in all 50 U.S. states and in 79 countries around the globe. Here in Alabama, our work is focused on protecting our lands, our freshwater sources and making sure we have a thriving coastal system that future generations of Alabamians can enjoy.”

Mitch Reid, State Director, The Nature Conservancy in Alabama

Finding a new headquarters in Birmingham

Although The Nature Conservancy in Alabama has enjoyed their current headquarters in an office building in downtown Birmingham, they’ve always had a vision for a standalone headquarters built to suit their needs as an organization. In 2019, The Nature Conservancy approached Williams Blackstock Architects to help bring their vision to life.

“When we were looking for a new space in Birmingham, we turned to Williams Blackstock Architects. We had seen examples their work and were impressed by their design and ability to bring out the history of a building. When we shared our vision, we could tell that Williams Blackstock Architects understood our dream.”

Mitch Reid, State Director, The Nature Conservancy in Alabama

Working together, The Nature Conservancy in Alabama and Williams Blackstock Architects identified the perfect space for their new headquarters—the former City Paper Company building at 3700 1st Avenue North in North Avondale.

“This building provided us with several opportunities. First, it gave The Nature Conservancy a chance to get out of a leased space and into a headquarters they could own. Second, the building was large enough to accommodate their warehouse needs, space for their office staff and for larger meetings, such as educational outreach opportunities. Finally, the building is a chance to create a high-profile public presence for The Nature Conservancy that represents the work they do across the state.”

Stephen Allen, President, Williams Blackstock Architects

Bringing The Nature Conservancy’s vision to life

Although the former City Paper Company building needed a lot of work, it was the perfect canvas for Williams Blackstock Architects to bring The Nature Conservancy in Alabama’s vision to life.

“Since conservation is one of The Nature Conservancy’s core messages, Williams Blackstock wanted to embrace that idea when deciding how to renovate this project. The building has had many modifications over the decades, so we saw this as a chance to fix structural needs while embracing and celebrating the raw and exposed nature of the existing building.”

Stephen Allen, President, Williams Blackstock Architects

Although the renovation of the building had its challenges, Williams Blackstock Architects was able to use those challenges as opportunities. For example, after a large portion of the roof collapsed during a particularly heavy thunderstorm, Williams Blackstock saw an opportunity to replace the roof support with locally-sourced wood joists and decking. The new roof supports embrace renewable regional materials and help provide a warm, inviting feeling to the office’s atmosphere.

In addition, Shelby Company—serving as General Contractor—has been a key partner in delivering creative solutions toward executing the project.

Features of The Nature Conservancy’s new Birmingham headquarters

Once complete, The Nature Conservancy’s new headquarters will:

• Serve as a base from which employees can embark for work in the field.
• Include office space for employees and leadership.
• Offer meeting space for The Nature Conservancy to host outreach programs for the community.

According to Allison Chang-Roberts—one of the architects involved in the project—Williams Blackstock was able to work with several people and groups that closely aligned with the mission of The Nature Conservancy to implement sustainable features in the design.

“We’re working with the community to implement several sustainable designs, from the roof all the way down to the landscaping. The roof will feature solar panels to help reduce the building’s carbon footprint, and we’ve purposefully designed each interior room to take full advantage of available natural light. With landscaping, we’ve implemented bioswales and cisterns to collect and utilize stormwater runoff.”

Allison Chang-Roberts, Architect, Williams Blackstock Architects

Those sustainable designs continue inside the headquarters. For example, Williams Blackstock worked with a carpet manufacturer that turns trash from the ocean into fibers that it uses to create a beautiful carpet that will be used on site.

“Although we wanted to keep the interior simple, we do have a few jazzy features to bring joy and color to the building. For example, we’ve designed the carpet to show a river flowing throughout the space. In other areas of the building, we’ve intentionally used wood from trees that are native to Alabama. You’ll see that in the logo wall as well as in furniture and other items throughout the project.”

Allison Chang-Roberts, Architect, Williams Blackstock Architects

Check out The Nature Conservancy’s new headquarters in Birmingham

“Since The Nature Conservancy works around the state—saving lands, working on rivers and preserving our coastal systems—it is important that we have a space where we can work together in a collaborative fashion. A space like this in the heart of Birmingham can be an example of the kind of work that we’re doing around the state, as well as a place where the community can come together to meet and talk about the work we’re doing for conservation in Alabama.”

Mitch Reid, State Director, The Nature Conservancy in Alabama

Excited to see The Nature Conservancy in Alabama’s headquarters completed? Make sure to follow Williams Blackstock Architects on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn to stay up-to-date on the projects progress!

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