Johnston Marklee completes Ray tower with green-metal facade in Phoenix

Ray Phoenix is a 26-story, 401-apartment residential tower in Phoenix’s Roosevelt Row Arts District. It is Johnston Marklee’s latest project integrating art, architecture, and community living.

This tower features a desert-inspired mint-green metal facade and a slender vertical form atop a broad podium. The result is a bold yet approachable presence in a district known for creativity.

The following article presents the design and program in an accessible way for architecture and engineering professionals interested in place-making, materials, and social spaces.

Project overview and design intent

Ray Phoenix is a collaboration between Ray (New York) and Vela (Kansas). It is part of Ray’s portfolio of owner-operated developments that bring art into daily life.

The building’s massing—a slim tower on a wide rectangular podium—creates a layered silhouette. It includes a full amenity deck, a pool deck at the base, and a ground-level retail setback.

Sharon Johnston describes the concept as an elemental, democratic composition grounded by a consistent grid. This grid visually and functionally connects private living spaces with communal gardens and social spaces.

This approach aims to make culture and design accessible to both residents and the wider community.

The architectural strategy uses a desert-inspired material palette, highlighted by a mint-green metal facade. This facade references the surrounding landscape while staying contemporary.

The elevation shows restraint: a disciplined grid, refined edges, and a rhythm that weaves exterior programs—gardens, decks, and plazas—into daily life. The tower’s verticality is balanced by the podium’s horizontal footprint, creating a transition from street level to living spaces above.

Architectural concept and material language

The design relies on a consistent grid that aligns units with communal facilities. This ensures clear wayfinding and a logical layout across all floors.

The mint facade is more than just a color. It expresses a regionally responsive materiality that evokes the desert and uses modern metal panel systems for durability and easy maintenance.

The podium contains amenity and garage floors. The crown features a pool deck that extends living spaces outdoors, a valued feature in urban residential towers.

Interior consultants Parts and Labor Design, working with Ray’s in-house team, select materials that reinforce the desert narrative: concrete, heavy-grit plaster, brick, glazed tile, and blond oak.

The furniture strategy uses wide, low profiles to create openness and maintain sightlines to the external landscape and communal zones. This material approach supports a durable, comfortable environment that ages well in Phoenix’s climate and light.

Program, amenities, and cultural strategy

Ray Phoenix Studios offers mostly studio apartments, along with one- and two-bedroom configurations throughout the tower.

The podium level features a gym with an outdoor patio.

There is also a communal kitchen and a large social space with a sunken lounge.

A resort-style pool deck includes a hot tub and shaded seating, promoting a social and health-focused lifestyle.

Landscaping by Grace Fuller Design uses North American natives—perennials, cacti, and grasses.

This approach connects the landscape to the local climate and biodiversity, creating a setting that can be enjoyed year-round.

Studio 105 functions as an exhibition space, linking residential life with artistic practices.

Ground-level retail brings activity to the base of the building.

Works by local artists, such as Carlisle Burch and rocki swiderski, bring cultural references to the interiors and lobby, including a mural by Alex Israel.

This blend of public art and resident life reflects Ray Phoenix’s belief that art, architecture, and design should be highly accessible, fostering culture for everyone.

• 26-story residential tower with 401 apartments
• Predominantly studios, with one- and two-bedroom units
• Rectangular podium housing amenities and parking
• Outdoor pool deck, hot tub, and shaded seating areas
• Gym, communal kitchen, sunken social lounge
• Studio 105 exhibition space and ground-floor retail
• Public art by local artists and a lobby mural
• Native landscaping strategy emphasizing perennials, cacti, and grasses

 
Here is the source article for this story: Johnston Marklee completes “democratic by nature” green-metal tower in Phoenix