One Year Later: Reflecting on the Renovation of Deco Familia’s East Olympic Funeral Home
A year after completing the renovation of Deco Familia’s East Olympic Funeral Home, it is rewarding to look back at a project that was about much more than updating a building.
From the beginning, the goal was to thoughtfully improve an established community institution while respecting the character and identity that were already there. Funeral homes occupy a unique place in our neighborhoods. They are buildings people often experience during some of the most significant and emotional moments of their lives, and the architecture should respond with dignity, warmth, and a sense of permanence.
For the East Olympic project, the renovation provided an opportunity to give the property a renewed presence while creating a more welcoming environment for the families and community it serves.
Respecting the Existing Building
Rather than approaching the project as a complete reinvention, we saw value in working with the building’s existing architecture.
The renovation focused on strengthening its identity, improving the experience of arriving at the property, and bringing greater consistency to the exterior and interior environment. Updated materials, finishes, lighting, landscape elements, and architectural details helped give the building a cleaner and more contemporary character while maintaining a sense of familiarity.
The result is intended to feel renewed rather than replaced.
That distinction is important in renovation work. Existing buildings carry histories that cannot always be recreated through new construction. When possible, architecture can preserve those layers while adapting a property to better serve the people who use it today.
Architecture in Service of Community
One of the most meaningful aspects of this project is its relationship to the surrounding community.
Architecture has the ability to influence much more than the experience inside a building. A renovated property can contribute to the street, strengthen a neighborhood institution, and demonstrate continued investment in the community around it.
At East Olympic, improvements to the building and site helped establish a more welcoming presence along the street, particularly in the evening when the architectural and landscape lighting give the property a warm presence within the neighborhood.
For a building whose purpose centers on families, remembrance, and gathering, creating that sense of welcome was especially important.
A Collaborative Effort
Projects like this are never the work of one person or one discipline.
I am grateful to have had the opportunity to collaborate with the Deco Familia team, Deodate Real Estate and Strategy Group, and Supreme General Contractors throughout the renovation.
Successful renovation projects require a constant balance between design intent, existing conditions, budget, construction realities, and the operational needs of the people who will ultimately occupy the space. The finished project reflects the collective effort required to bring all of those considerations together.
A year after completion, it is particularly satisfying to see the building continuing to serve the families who come through its doors.
The Next Chapter of an Existing Building
As architects, we often talk about transformation, but some of the most meaningful projects are quieter than that.
Sometimes the goal is simply to take something that already matters and make it better—to extend its useful life, clarify its identity, improve how people experience it, and help it continue serving its community for another generation.
The renovation of Deco Familia’s East Olympic Funeral Home represents that kind of project for me.
One year later, I remain proud of the collaboration, proud of the finished building, and grateful to have played a part in its next chapter.
Architecture is at its best when improving a building also strengthens its relationship with the people and community around it.
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