Buildings in the News 2007
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Pioneer Green Developer Prospects
for LEED Gold in California
 In
October, a 13-story building called the Elleven became the first
condominium project to achieve LEED Gold certification in California.
Completed last year as part
of the revitalization of the downtown Los Angeles business district,
Elleven is the first new residential construction project in the
area in 20 years. Its 176 units sold out in two days for more than
one million dollars each.
Built by the South Group,
a collaboration between Gerding Edlen Development and Williams,
Dame & Atkins Development, Elleven is the first of three concrete-framed
towers planned. The Evo and the Luma (rendering pictured) are underway.
Taking the green-minded developer's
success in Portland, Ore., to Los Angeles, the buildings incorporate
an array of green features, from bamboo floors to operable windows
and an energy-efficient utility system.
The South Group's Gerding
Edlen Development currently has 36 other LEED projects, either certified
or in process, which is the highest number of any private developer
in the nation.
Williams,
Dame & Atkins Development is also a pioneer in sustainability,
leading the development of Portland's South Waterfront under the
new LEED for Neighborhood Development Pilot Program.
ICFs
Help School Make the Green Grade
 An
innovative classroom addition for the Windrush School in El Cerrito,
Calif., takes advantage of the school's bayside location to be 96
percent more energy efficient than a comparable school building,
equating to an energy savings of approximately $10,000 per year.
The new wing will add seven
classrooms and a library to the school. Sustainable features of
the design include the use of insulating concrete forms (ICFs) for
the walls, floors and roofs. The ICFs will use concrete with
a high level of fly ash. In addition, the wing will use photovoltaic
panels; the naturally ventilated and cooled classrooms will have
operable windows and skylights, allowing breezes from the San Francisco
Bay to do the work of mechanical air conditioners; and bioretention
planters will reduce stormwater runoff and cleanse and treat the
remaining stormwater before it enters the city's system.
The new 14,000-square-foot
classroom wing seeks to achieve a LEED® silver rating.
It will likely be the first LEED project in the city.
A groundbreaking ceremony
for the new 14,000-square-foot classroom wing took place last month
and the building is expected to be ready for the fall 2008 term.
The project was designed by Ratcliff in Emeryville, Calif.
Strong
and Sustainable, Concrete "Most Wanted" for FBI Complex
 For
a new headquarters building for the Houston office of the Federal
Bureau of Investigation, a reinforced concrete frame is both strong
enough to meet blast resistance requirements and green enough to
achieve LEED certification.
The 290,000-square-foot field
office complex includes an eight-story tower built of reinforced
concrete. A lightweight metal frame will be hung off of the concrete
walls to carry a "second skin" for the building facade.
The almost opaque glass, placed five feet away from the actual thermal
wall, will shade the structure substantially from the direct heat
gain of the hot Texas sun.
Designed by Leo A. Daly/LAN+PageSoutherlandPage,
a joint venture, the building has been designed to achieve a LEED®
Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council and is being
built as part of the General Services Administration's (GSA) Design
Excellence program.
The inherent mass and stiffness
characteristics of reinforced concrete offer distinct advantages
over other building materials to meet the blast loading and progressive
collapse requirements of the GSA.
Children's Hospital Research
Center Brings Work Out of the Laboratory
 Nearing
completion in Cincinnati is a new research facility that utilized
structural concrete to provide a design that fosters collaboration
among scientists, encouraging interaction between the departments.
The Cincinnati Children's
Hospital is building the 375,000-square-foot facility on the site
of a demolished 1929 clinical building. "Location S" will
allude to the contextual nature of the campus architecture, but
will also seek to reflect the cutting edge, world-class research
institution and serve as a distinctive gateway building to the southern
end of Children's property.
It will include 10 research
floors housing mechanical equipment and a data center. Each research
floor is based on an integrated model of wet lab and dry lab research
space. A central circulation spine links to an existing research
tower and provides interaction opportunities such as meeting rooms,
informal breakout space and quieter spaces of respite. All these
spaces will be accessible on a wireless network allowing research
work to break out of the lab. Double volume overlooks and vistas
through the glass curtain wall bring a sense of connection to the
exterior as well as provide light.
The project makes use of
a wide modular joist framing system.
The design and construction
team includes GBBN Architects, Messer Construction, Fosdick &
Hilmer, Inc., Jostin Concrete Construction, and THP Ltd., Inc.
High-Strength Rebar Powers
Advances in High-Seismic High-Rise
 The
31-story Escala condominium in Seattle, Wash., marks a new milestone
in concrete skyscraper construction.
The use of high-strength (100 ksi) rebar significantly reduces rebar
congestion in the columns, streamlining concrete placement and improving
construction practices. Conventional rebar strength is 60 to 75
ksi.
By using the higher strength
reinforcing steel, structural engineer Cary Kopczynski & Company
was able to reduce the number and diameter of vertical rebars and
ties in the typically grossly congested columns, which are detailed
such to resist seismic forces. Constructibility vastly improves
with fewer bars, allowing smaller hoisting equipment, normal concrete
vibrator usage, less fitting problems during rebar placement, as
well as easier concrete placement.
The Seattle project is the
first U.S. application of high-strength rebar, which was manufactured
by MMFX, Irvine, Calif.
The
$140 million building is designed by Mulvanny G2 Architecture of
Bellevue; contractor is J.E. Dunn. The Seattle Building Department
approved the use of high-strength reinforcing steel strength ahead
of the pending ACI 318 Building Code change that would allow its
use in concrete frame construction.
Princeton Science Library
Pushes the Building Envelope
 The
new Lewis Science Library at Princeton University, designed by Frank
Gehry and DeSimone Consulting Engineers, chose concrete to provide
the necessary support for the architect’s signature elements.
Gehry, whose work often features bold, curved shapes that seem
to defy the physical limitations of ordinary building materials,
used a concrete frame designed by DeSimone that included a typical
12-inch flat-plate concrete floor with spans up to 30 feet. According
to DeSimone, the use of concrete is vital to the overall lateral
stiffness and supports the Gehry signature roof structure.
The new $73 million library consolidates the geosciences, chemistry,
ecology, evolutionary biology, and molecular biology book collections.
The 88,000- square-foot structure includes an 81,000 square-foot
library complex and expands Princeton University’s current
storage for science-related publications to provide additional classroom
areas and faculty offices for a diverse range of science disciplines.
The Concrete Industry Board of New York City recently awarded the
Lewis library, currently in its final phases of construction, with
an Award of Merit.
Concrete Towers Over
Chicago
For the first time in its history, Chicago has three supertall skyscrapers
under construction, and all utilize high-strength concrete and a
combination of a concrete core attached to perimeter super columns.
Trump International Hotel & Tower, which will soar to a total
height of 1,362 feet, currently stands at more than 500 feet. The
Waterview Tower has just emerged from the ground on the corner of
Wacker Drive and Clark Street and will reach 1,047 feet when completed.
Finally, the Spire on Lake Shore Drive will be the nation’s
tallest building at 2,000 feet. The Spire currently is only a hole
in the ground, but contractors will soon pound steel and concrete
caissons 120 feet into the bedrock below.
Each tower will use a core and outrigger system that allows a tower
to place more usable square footage at the exterior of the building
allowing more natural light and larger surrounding views. Concrete
“arms” will extend away from the building’s core
and attach to high-strength structural columns at or near the perimeter.
The enormous weight of the concrete core and super columns reduces
the wind-caused oscillation.
Signature Tower Makes
Mark on Nashville Skyline
 Workers
broke ground last month on Signature Tower, a 70-story mixed-use
building that will dominate the Nashville skyline and stand as the
tallest U.S. skyscraper outside of Chicago and New York.
The $370-million project will include 58 stories of luxury condominiums,
office and retail space, and a Hotel Palomar. Completion is scheduled
for 2009.
Developer is Giarratana LLC; architect is Smallwood Reynolds, Stewart,
Stewart, and Associates; contractor is Turner Construction.
Structural engineering firm Walter P. Moore relied on post-tensioned
flat-plate floors and an outrigger-braced concrete core, with eight
outrigger walls spanning from core to perimeter at three levels
up the height of the tower. The concrete tower cantilevers 1,167
feet from the base to the top of the spire, resulting in a slenderness
ratio of 8.6:1. Occupant comfort in the upper levels of the tower
will be maintained with the use of a 200-foot-tall steel spire,
which will have a damper to reduce accelerations.
San Francisco Lifts
High-Rise Moratorium
The San Francisco Building Commission recently reversed a ruling
that limited the use of concrete lateral framing systems for high
seismic design categories.
In November 2006, San Francisco building officials changed their
policy of allowing the use of performance-based design with a case-by-case
review, which allows structural designers to use up-to-date research
data and engineering judgment instead of a strictly code-based prescriptive
approach. Building officials were reluctant to allow this “alternative
rational analysis” design approach in the absence of an industry-wide
accepted guideline.
Los Angeles designers, however, have for two years capitalized
on performance-based design and developed concrete structural systems
exceeding heights of 240 feet based on their own set of guidelines
accepted by the City of Los Angeles. Taking a similar approach,
the Structural Engineers Association of Northern California developed
new guidelines (Administrative Bulletin 083) incorporating performance-based
design that was unanimously accepted by the San Francisco Building
Commission.
The vote effectively lifts the citywide moratorium on plan-check
of high-rise projects with performance-based principles, allowing
the second largest urban center of the Western U.S. to build concrete
high-rises efficiently.
Developers See Star Power in Hollywood Complex
 On
July 17, the Los Angeles City Council approved Blvd6200, a $400-million
complex of seven buildings that will house 1,000 rental apartments
plus retail, parking, and public space.
Named for its address on Hollywood Boulevard near Vine, Blvd6200
is the latest milestone in the revitalization of the rundown area.
Since 2001, the area has undergone a major urban transformation
stressing subway transportation and high-density development. Blvd6200
continues that momentum with 1,014 apartment units, 40,000 square
feel of live/work units, 2,900 parking places, 12,000 square feet
of public plazas, and 175,000 square feet of retail space. About
10 percent of the units will be affordable housing.
The project will be environmentally sustainable and LEED certified,
according to a news release issued by the developer, The Clarett
Group. Designer is Van Tilburg, Banvard & Soderbergh Architects.
Construction is expected to begin early next year and be completed
within four years.
Minnesota College Goes for LEED Gold with
Concrete
 The
new science complex at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., is
benefiting from the economic and environmental benefits of concrete
construction.
Originally proposed with a structural steel frame, the new three-story,
180,000- square foot complex that includes research space, classrooms,
teaching labs, and a science library, will use a standard pan and
joist concrete framing system. This system accommodates a floor
layout with flexible and technology-rich classrooms that keep pace
with emerging scientific discovery. The concrete frame also provides
the necessary stiffness to minimize vibration concerns that coincide
with laboratory workspaces.
The new Science Complex will be a "green" building, one
that measurably lowers operating costs, minimizes the impact on
the environment, and promotes whole health for the users. The project
hopes to achieve LEED Gold certification. St. Olaf worked closely
with the architect and engineer (Holabird & Root) and design-build
contractor (Boldt Construction) to carefully selected building materials
based on recycled content and lifecycle costs. Concrete helped achieve
both criteria.
Other sustainable buildings features include the abundant natural
light penetrating deep into the interior spaces and the accessible
rooftop terrace containing a green roof.
SpongeBob SquarePants Slept Here
 Nickelodeon
is teaming up with Marriott International Inc. to build a chain
of kid-friendly resort hotels. The first hotel, one of 20 planned
by 2020, is scheduled to open in San Diego, Calif., in 2010. The
hotels will feature elaborate water parks and entertainment based
on SpongeBob SquarePants, Dora the Explorer, and other top shows
of the cable TV channel.
The first hotel, designed by Gensler Architects of San Francisco
and set to break ground in January, will be a 650-room facility
with a 100,000-square-foot water park in San Diego's Liberty Station,
former home of the Naval Training Center.
The hotels will be co-developed and owned by Miller Global Properties,
a real estate investment company that partners with Marriott in
other ventures. Marriott will manage all the properties, which it
describes as "upscale, self-contained destination resorts."
Hotel construction provides a great promotional opportunity for
concrete framing because it provides a very efficient solution for
the large number of repetitive, compartmentalized units. Hawaii
and the Phoenix area are being considered for the next Nickelodeon-themed
properties. While the Marriott will be the largest hotel in the
Liberty Station master plan, two others are under construction.
The Huntington Hotel Group is developing a 150-room Homewood Suites
by Hilton scheduled to open in September, and a 200-room Courtyard
by Marriott hotel scheduled to open in January 2008.
Royal Bank of Scotland Makes it Happen With
Concrete
The British-owned Royal Bank of Scotland is currently building the
largest trading floor space in the world in Stamford, Conn. The
new $400 million, 12-story, 500,000-square-foot office complex is
located in downtown Stamford near Interstate 95.
The office and parking garage complex, designed by Thorton-Tomasetti
of New York City, features a combination of post-tensioned concrete
parking garages as well as conventional concrete construction. According
to general contractor Turner Construction, concrete was selected
because of its availability and speed of construction. The project
will consume an estimated 10,000 tons of cement.
ICFs Allow Shows
to Go On
 A
movie complex requires large, straight walls to accommodate screens,
soundproofing, and fast construction. For one developer in
Utah, an insulating concrete form (ICF) system met those needs plus
more.
For the Megaplex 20 at the
District near Salt Lake City, the owner wanted not only the walls
between the cinemas to be soundproof, but the structural walls as
well. In addition, the project had a tight time schedule.
Reward Wall Systems provided
the project with the very tall walls—some as high as 50 feet—that
were completely straight. The walls already had a sound transmission
class rating of 41 to 65, virtually soundproof, and for the Megaplex
project, additional sound installation was installed on one side
of each wall.
ICFs also met an ambitious
timetable, with the 165,000 square feet of ICF walls going up in
about five months and the entire project completed within the 13-month
project timeframe.
The project, completed in
May 2006, recently was honored by the National Commercial Builders
Council of the National Association of Home Builders in the 2008
Awards of Excellence Competition.
The Megaplex 20 Theater is
owned by Larry H. Miller Theater, Inc. FFKR Architects, Sahara Construction
and IMS Masonry were part of the construction team.
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