Construction Complete at ViaSat of New Café Pavilion

San Diego-based Pacific Building Group has completed new construction of a 7,000-square-foot, free-standing café pavilion – the Mega Bite Café - and amenity courtyard at the ViaSat Inc. campus, located at 6155 El Camino Real in Carlsbad, Calif.

The project included shell and core construction and related tenant improvements for the café, as well as other courtyard improvements, including relocation of sand volleyball courts, outdoor seating, gathering areas and other hardscape and landscaping, all located in the center of an existing occupied corporate campus. Pacific Building Group provided pre-construction services including cost analysis and scheduling, as part of the team to assist ViaSat and Gensler, the architectural firm on the project.

The ViaSat project underscores a trend that has landlords and employers adding workplace amenities that will bolster employee recruitment and retention.

“Beyond positioning us as a desirable place to work, we believe these amenities also have the potential to positively affect productivity, health and morale,” said Dan Cancelleri, Director, Facilities at ViaSat. “We aim to be cutting edge with our network products and services, and we’d like our physical space to reflect a forward-thinking philosophy as well.”

“The entire design focused on providing as much outdoor space as possible and activating the in-between space.” said Stacy Cannon, an architect at Gensler.  “The goal was to create a space for employees to enjoy the outdoors and create a variety of small areas to collaborate with teams as well as be functional for large company events. ”

Pacific Building Group recently completed two other projects that centered around improving employee comfort and enjoyment. 

“Kilroy hired us to add an outdoor facility with WiFi access and shaded sitting areas at their Kilroy Centre Del Mar Building campus, and Teradata had us complete a renovation to their employee café and coffee bar,” said Jim Roherty, president of Pacific Building Group.   

Pacific Building Group’s team for the ViaSat project included Eric Mudge  as senior project manager; Tyler Mitchell as assistant project manager,; Pete Hamilton  as superintendent; and Mark Irish as chief estimator. 

Gensler’s Ralph Linder as project director and Cannon as senior project manager provided architectural and interior design services. MPE Consulting provided electrical engineering services; DEC Engineers provided mechanical engineering services; Hope Amundson Engineering provided structural engineering services; Van Dyke Landscape Architects provided Landscape design; RW Smith provided kitchen design; and SWS Engineering provided civil engineering services.