From left, Bryce Miller, Sharon Harless and Rebecca Napier of Wetland Studies and Solutions Inc.’s regional team, which has moved into the so-called Emerald Barn building on Brook Road. (Photos by Jonathan Spiers)
A former trolley repair shed-turned-office in Richmond’s Northside has landed a tenant well-versed in its green-building design.
Wetland Studies and Solutions Inc. started moving in last week to its new regional homebase at 1620 Brook Road, the so-called Emerald Barn building that previously housed the headquarters of local builder-developer Dovetail Construction Co.
Dovetail’s Julie and Paul Weissend have moved out of the building and are renting it to WSSI, an environmental services and consulting firm that had been working out of two smaller offices in Midlothian and Mechanicsville.
WSSI’s Bryce Miller, who headed up the yearlong search for a larger space, said the local team was drawn to the building for its central location between those former offices, as well as its certification as a LEED Platinum and net zero energy building. WSSI’s headquarters building in Northern Virginia was the first in the state to be certified LEED Gold when it was built in 2005, Miller said.
The Oz-themed building includes a yellow-brick-road-style sidewalk and freestanding solar panels.
“It couldn’t be any better for us,” said Miller, an arborist who leads WSSI’s environmental compliance division. “When we saw this, it just meshed with what we do, what we stand for.”
Laughing, Miller added, “A lot of the staff in the Northern Virginia office are like, ‘I didn’t think the Gainesville office could be outdone.’ Everyone’s like, ‘They’re awesome. It’s way cooler.’”
A subsidiary of the national Davey Tree Expert Co., which acquired it in 2014, WSSI had been operating locally out of a space at 717 N. Courthouse Road when Davey acquired EEE Consulting, also known as 3E, in 2020. That deal included 3E’s Mechanicsville office, which Miller said was about the size of WSSI’s 4,000-square-foot Midlothian space.
“At Courthouse, we just didn’t have enough room to grow to take on everyone from Mechanicsville,” Miller said, adding that staff at both offices wanted to remain relatively close by. “We had to find that happy medium.”
Work stations have been added in the main space of the building, originally a trolley repair shed.
To accomplish that, Miller said they created a heat map of everyone’s home addresses and conducted an in-depth survey to determine the best central location for the most employees. They also enlisted Eric Hammond with Commonwealth Commercial, who Miller said showed them the Brook Road building.
At nearly 12,000 square feet, the recently expanded building provides space for growth for the local team, which totals about 40. In addition to workspaces and individual offices, the building includes storage space for the company’s field equipment.
The office also is serving as a testing ground of sorts for a hotel-style work system in which employees can reserve workstations for days they’ll be in the office. The system uses an app that the team developed and is serving as a pilot program for the company.
He said negotiations with the Weissends began in January and led to a multiyear lease.
In an email, Julie Weissend said she and Paul are thrilled to have WSSI as a tenant. The married couple, who converted the former industrial building in 2010, have moved Dovetail’s office to their Monument Avenue home.
Julie and Paul Weissend have rented out the former trolley barn that they converted into an office for their Dovetail Construction firm. (BizSense file)
“They are embracing their new home with the same kind of intention and sensitivity that we fostered in creating it,” said Julie, who nicknamed the building The Emerald Barn for its green-building design and its view of the city skyline that reminded her of Oz. The building even includes a yellow-brick-road-style sidewalk at its main entrance.
Built in 1907, the structure originally served as a repair barn for electric railway cars. The rehabbed building was the first in the U.S. to be certified LEED Platinum and net zero energy and be listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The latter could dictate whether signage can be added to the structure, as Miller said they would like to do. If that’s not possible, he said signage would be added elsewhere on the property.
Sharon Harless, a director with WSSI who is leading the local office, said the team is happy with their new home, and to all be under one roof.
“Neither office was really large enough to accommodate the merging of the two offices, and corporate was really supportive about how we were going to create a new office space,” Harless said. “It’s exciting to be in a Platinum LEED building.”
Started as The Michael Rolband Co., WSSI changed its name in 1991 to reflect a shift in focus to Clean Water Act permitting and wetlands protection and restoration efforts, according to its website. It has more than 230 employees in seven offices in Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina and Florida.
In addition to stream restoration and wetlands permitting and mitigation, the local office’s services include environmental permit compliance, land disturbance consulting and construction inspections. Public and private sector clients include Dominion Energy and the Virginia Department of Transportation.
From left, Bryce Miller, Sharon Harless and Rebecca Napier of Wetland Studies and Solutions Inc.’s regional team, which has moved into the so-called Emerald Barn building on Brook Road. (Photos by Jonathan Spiers)
A former trolley repair shed-turned-office in Richmond’s Northside has landed a tenant well-versed in its green-building design.
Wetland Studies and Solutions Inc. started moving in last week to its new regional homebase at 1620 Brook Road, the so-called Emerald Barn building that previously housed the headquarters of local builder-developer Dovetail Construction Co.
Dovetail’s Julie and Paul Weissend have moved out of the building and are renting it to WSSI, an environmental services and consulting firm that had been working out of two smaller offices in Midlothian and Mechanicsville.
WSSI’s Bryce Miller, who headed up the yearlong search for a larger space, said the local team was drawn to the building for its central location between those former offices, as well as its certification as a LEED Platinum and net zero energy building. WSSI’s headquarters building in Northern Virginia was the first in the state to be certified LEED Gold when it was built in 2005, Miller said.
The Oz-themed building includes a yellow-brick-road-style sidewalk and freestanding solar panels.
“It couldn’t be any better for us,” said Miller, an arborist who leads WSSI’s environmental compliance division. “When we saw this, it just meshed with what we do, what we stand for.”
Laughing, Miller added, “A lot of the staff in the Northern Virginia office are like, ‘I didn’t think the Gainesville office could be outdone.’ Everyone’s like, ‘They’re awesome. It’s way cooler.’”
A subsidiary of the national Davey Tree Expert Co., which acquired it in 2014, WSSI had been operating locally out of a space at 717 N. Courthouse Road when Davey acquired EEE Consulting, also known as 3E, in 2020. That deal included 3E’s Mechanicsville office, which Miller said was about the size of WSSI’s 4,000-square-foot Midlothian space.
“At Courthouse, we just didn’t have enough room to grow to take on everyone from Mechanicsville,” Miller said, adding that staff at both offices wanted to remain relatively close by. “We had to find that happy medium.”
Work stations have been added in the main space of the building, originally a trolley repair shed.
To accomplish that, Miller said they created a heat map of everyone’s home addresses and conducted an in-depth survey to determine the best central location for the most employees. They also enlisted Eric Hammond with Commonwealth Commercial, who Miller said showed them the Brook Road building.
At nearly 12,000 square feet, the recently expanded building provides space for growth for the local team, which totals about 40. In addition to workspaces and individual offices, the building includes storage space for the company’s field equipment.
The office also is serving as a testing ground of sorts for a hotel-style work system in which employees can reserve workstations for days they’ll be in the office. The system uses an app that the team developed and is serving as a pilot program for the company.
He said negotiations with the Weissends began in January and led to a multiyear lease.
In an email, Julie Weissend said she and Paul are thrilled to have WSSI as a tenant. The married couple, who converted the former industrial building in 2010, have moved Dovetail’s office to their Monument Avenue home.
Julie and Paul Weissend have rented out the former trolley barn that they converted into an office for their Dovetail Construction firm. (BizSense file)
“They are embracing their new home with the same kind of intention and sensitivity that we fostered in creating it,” said Julie, who nicknamed the building The Emerald Barn for its green-building design and its view of the city skyline that reminded her of Oz. The building even includes a yellow-brick-road-style sidewalk at its main entrance.
Built in 1907, the structure originally served as a repair barn for electric railway cars. The rehabbed building was the first in the U.S. to be certified LEED Platinum and net zero energy and be listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The latter could dictate whether signage can be added to the structure, as Miller said they would like to do. If that’s not possible, he said signage would be added elsewhere on the property.
Sharon Harless, a director with WSSI who is leading the local office, said the team is happy with their new home, and to all be under one roof.
“Neither office was really large enough to accommodate the merging of the two offices, and corporate was really supportive about how we were going to create a new office space,” Harless said. “It’s exciting to be in a Platinum LEED building.”
Started as The Michael Rolband Co., WSSI changed its name in 1991 to reflect a shift in focus to Clean Water Act permitting and wetlands protection and restoration efforts, according to its website. It has more than 230 employees in seven offices in Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina and Florida.
In addition to stream restoration and wetlands permitting and mitigation, the local office’s services include environmental permit compliance, land disturbance consulting and construction inspections. Public and private sector clients include Dominion Energy and the Virginia Department of Transportation.
What a perfect new location for WSS! Love this space!
Please come visit us.
Congrats to Eric Hammond, a hard working commercial office space specialist for finding this tenant for this space
Eric did do a terrific job!!! He is the consummate professional consistently working to facilitate agreements where all parties benefit. He is very much appreciated.
Eric did a fabulous job! He is the consummate professional and we very much appreciate his efforts.