Mandeville, Louisiana 

The client, a premier Gulf South insurance agency, desired an attractive office building for its highly visible site along Highway 190, the main north-south vehicular corridor linking Covington, Louisiana, to New Orleans. VergesRome Architects maximized the potential for the growing company’s Northshore flagship, designing a versatile, daylight-filled one-story building with 14-foot-high ceilings, taking advantage of adjacent wooded views to the east and south of the site. 

VRA oriented the building to take advantage of passive solar concepts to minimize heat gain and maximize shading from the western sun. Prodema slat panels (Barcelona, Spain) aid in screening intense afternoon sunlight. Curtain wall solar glazing was an optimal design solution for the east and south elevations, protected and shaded by the woodlands and extended overhangs on the south side. 

The use of white concrete masonry and teak wood on the façade reflects the client’s passion for sailing, contrasting with nearby office buildings of dark painted stucco. The floor plan provides an open office work area on the west side of the building. Private offices are located along the east side. 

Construction on the 5,000 SF offices of Eagan Insurance Company was completed in July 2014 at a cost of approximately $1.8 million.