Metal and glass highlight office towers in new urban infill project
As one of the largest urban infill projects ever undertaken in Washington, D.C., CityCenterDC occupies 3 1/2 city blocks and eight buildings. Located on 10 acres, the mixed-use, LEED-certified development blends 2.5 million square feet of shops, restaurants, apartments, condominiums, offices, a hotel and public spaces in downtown Washington, D.C., offering a transit- and pedestrian-oriented neighborhood experience.
The District of Columbia selected owner and master developer, Hines, Washington, D.C., in 2003 to purposefully create the massive $1 billion campus on the site of the former Washington Convention Center. Situated in the heart of the downtown’s office core, the project sits on New York Avenue between the new Walter E. Washington Convention Center and the Treasury Building and White House.
London-based Foster + Partners served as the master-plan architect for the overall project and the design architect for the office and for-sale-housing components. Shalom Baranes Associates PC, a Washington, D.C.-based architectural firm, served as the executive architect for all buildings, associate master-plan architect and the design architect for the two rental apartment buildings. The project features 674 residential units, along with 515,000 square feet of office space and 326,000 square feet of retail space.
Each 280,000-square-foot tower is 11 stories and features unobstructed 360-degree views from the inside of every floor with glass pedestrian bridges linking them. Most of the ground level of both office towers contains high-end retail shops and restaurants with large aluminum and clear glass storefronts.
For the office tower’s sleek metallic and glass exterior, TSI/Exterior Wall Systems Inc., Upper Marlboro, Md., installed the aluminum-framed curtainwall and storefront, plus the aluminum panels and sunshades, all manufactured by Baker Metal Products Inc., Dallas. Texas Finishing Co., Carrollton, Texas, finished the majority of the building products in 70 percent PVDF resin-based Fluropon Classic II coatings in Bright Pewter from Valspar Corp., Minneapolis. Valspar’s two-coat Fluropon finish in Black Buckle was selected for the ground-floor storefront systems.
“We selected Valspar for this project due to superior quality and customer service we receive during all phases,” says Ken Martin, general manager at Texas Finishing. “From bid time and paint selection as well as product application to completion, Valspar has always been there to assist in providing a quality product and service to our customers.”
“It is both a great privilege and a great opportunity to be able to develop a parcel this large starting with a blank slate,” says Gerald Hines, founder and chairman of Hines. “The master plan for CityCenterDC is designed to welcome pedestrians, to bring neighborhoods together and to be sustainable for generations.”
“The success of our office leasing campaign validates our vision for CityCenterDC,” says Howard J. Riker, managing director of Hines. “Our office tenants will benefit from and contribute to the creation of a vibrant blend of office, shopping, dining, residential and cultural spaces and experiences.”
CityCenterDC’s entire development was accepted into the U.S. Green Building Council‘s pilot program for LEED Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND), and received Gold certification-the first in the U.S. to achieve this. The office buildings also earned pre-certification for LEED Core and Shell at the Gold level, and the residential buildings have received Silver certification for LEED New Construction. Integrated throughout the project are extensive green roofs, native and adaptive vegetation, along with low-impact development and stormwater strategies.
CityCenterDC office towers, Washington, D.C.
Awards: Associated Builders and Contractors of Metro Washington’s Excellence in Construction Award for Mega Project and Associated General Contractors of D.C.’s Washington Contractor Award for Joint Venture New Construction
Project owner/master developer: Hines, Washington, D.C.
Master-plan architect/office tower and for-sale-housing design architect: Foster + Partners, London
Associate master-plan architect/executive architect for all buildings/residential rental design architect: Shalom Baranes Associates Architects (SBA), Washington, D.C.
General contractor: Joint venture between Clark Construction Group LLC, Bethesda, Md., and The Smoot Construction Co., Washington, D.C.
Architectural coatings applicator: Texas Finishing Co., Carrollton, Texas
Glazing installer: TSI/Exterior Wall Systems Inc., Upper Marlboro, Md.
Architectural coatings: Valspar Corp., Minneapolis, www.valsparinspireme.com
Curtainwall, storefront, sunshades and panels: Baker Metal Products Inc., Dallas, www.bakermetal.com
Photo: Aker Imaging, courtesy of The Val spa r Corp.