News + Ideas
Our thoughts, publications, white papers, research and current events.

Tom Butt, Founder of Interactive Resources, Inc. and Former Richmond Mayor, Receives National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Highest Honor
The National Trust for Historic Preservation has awarded the prestigious Louise du Pont Crowninshield Award to Tom Butt, founder and President of Interactive Resources, Inc. This esteemed award, the National Trust’s highest national honor, recognizes Tom Butt’s...
Tom Butt, Founder of Interactive Resources, Inc. and Former Richmond Mayor, Receives National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Highest Honor
The National Trust for Historic Preservation has awarded the prestigious Louise du Pont Crowninshield Award to Tom Butt, founder and President of Interactive Resources, Inc. This esteemed award, the National Trust’s highest national honor, recognizes Tom Butt’s...
A Milestone for the Masquers Playhouse
We are excited for The Masquers Playhouse to have reached a major milestone in its journey to reopening! Today, an 880 pound steel support beam was installed that will contribute to the repairs to the historic theater, allowing it to re-open for performances (when...
Cutting-Edge Laboratory Design Project in Richmond, California
We recently completed a cutting-edge laboratory design project for our client Zygo Corporation, a global leader in advanced optical metrology systems. The facility in Richmond, California produces optics including the len(s) for the Keck Observatory in Hawaii, and the...
Essential Architecture: GSA, DGS & USPS
During this challenging time, we are thankful to be hard at work. Many of our clients are designated as essential, and we have two new on-call contracts to announce: with the General Services Administration (GSA) and with the Department of General Services (DGS), both...
Throwback Thursday: VHS footage from 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake Investigation
How’s this for a serious Throwback Thursday – more than 30 years ago, following the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, Interactive Resources, Inc. was enlisted on an emergency basis to evaluate the condition of Candlestick Park, which was hosting the third game of the World...
Happy Holidays from Interactive Resources, Inc.
Annual gift giving to those in need has been a holiday tradition at Interactive Resources, Inc. for many years. This year, we worked with Verde Elementary School to fulfill the Christmas wish lists for five Richmond families. Presents were hand-delivered to the...
AIA East Bay Spotlights 7 Stars Holistic Healing Center
Are you curious about cannabis dispensaries, what they look like, and how they are designed? In collaboration with the AIA East Bay, we recently hosted a site tour of one of our dispensary projects, 7 Stars Holistic Healing Center. This project entailed the renovation...
Loma Prieta 30 Years Later
October 17, 1989, I was in my Point Richmond office talking to a client in a high rise in San Francisco. All of a sudden, he yelled, “holy shit,” and I heard crashing in the background (It was his bookcases falling over). The phone went dead. A few seconds later, it...
UC Berkeley’s Women’s Faculty Club Gets a New Roof of its Own*
Interactive Resources, Inc. has a long and successful practice of providing historic preservation services. We have designed and overseen the construction of hundreds of historic rehabilitation projects. One such recent project is for the University of California,...
Case Study: BART Waterproofing Project Saves Tens of Millions of Gallons of Drinking Water Annually
By Thomas K. Butt, FAIA, LEED AP BD+C From 2011 to 2016, I was project manager for Interactive Resources, Inc. on a project for BART to repair extensive leaks into the BART Powell Street Station that had plagued BART for decades and had stymied continuous previous...
Who was Frank J. Hagel?
Interactive Resources, Inc. recently completed a six-year-long project for The Frank Hagel Federal Building in Richmond, California. The main tenant of this six-story structure is the Social Security Administration, and Interactive Resources, Inc. was retained by the...