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September 23, 2018
in
by John W

Milton North Campus Expansion

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School Washington, DC   Originally constructed in 1950 and located on a steeply sloped site across from Rock Creek Park, the existing building had been home to the Jewish Day School since 2002.  A primary driver for the project was expansion of the school’s academic program to include middle school.   GBR’s design retained and renovated the original classroom wing on 16th Street N.W.  The existing gymnasium and core areas were removed to allow for a properly sized and equipped gymnasium for middle school students; including a turf recreational field on the roof.  The middle school (grades 6 through 8) occupies a new third floor level.  A new classroom wing located on the north east edge of the site provides shared space for Art and Music classrooms.  The renovation includes upgrades to all building systems and has been designed to achieve LEED® silver certification   Contextually, the building aesthetics are intended to quietly...

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September 21, 2018
in
by sean

Gonzaga Stadium & Eye Street Plaza

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Gonzaga College High School Washington, DC   As the oldest all-boys school in Washington, DC, Gonzaga College High School is proud of its rich history and maintains a deep commitment to its inner-city location. The school’s iconic main façade fronts the first block of I Street, NW. Years ago, the school had acquired the street from the city to use as parking and service access.   Facing a series of concerns common for an urban campus – outdoor space for students, athletic fields, appropriate parking, and perimeter security, the school recognized the need to reimagine and redevelop Eye Street along with its football field to create a new campus front door and arrival sequence. The challenge was to resolve these issues while enhancing Gonzaga’s strong sense of tradition.   The solution creates a new 1,300-person stadium facility above a 300 car below-grade parking garage. This allowed for redevelopment of Eye Street into a student-focused pedestrian mall. The...

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September 19, 2018
in
by sean

Oakwood School Expansion Planning

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Oakwood School Annandale, Virginia   Occupying a former church building since 1981, the Oakwood School needed to better utilize its existing space and transform its exterior appearance to better reflect its educational mission.    In line with their strategic goal to provide an optimal educational environment that enhances the school’s multisensory teaching approach, GBR developed a phased plan to renovate and expand the campus of this independent school for students with learning differences.   To initiate this process, GBR led a series of stakeholder engagement sessions to gain input from faculty, staff, students, parents and alumni.  The results of this engagement effort led to development of the long-term space needs required to support the school’s unique team model concept that requires space for homeroom, break-outs and team teaching.  The resulting plan was carefully developed along with a phasing approach to allow the work to be done over time while the school remains in operation.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]...

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September 14, 2018
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by John W

Sheehy Theater Renovation

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Gonzaga College High School Washington, DC [/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height="16px"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Originally constructed in 1896, this historic building has the distinction of being the longest, continually operating theater in Washington, DC. In fact, this major renovation project was completed within a nine-month construction time-frame to allow the continuous string of annual performances to remain intact.   To respect the historic character of the space, the theater’s impressive proscenium arch and plaster ceiling detailing were carefully preserved while the space was completely gutted and all systems modernized. The comprehensive renovation included new HVAC, AV, theater lighting and rigging systems, improved acoustics, and updated finishes throughout. A new light and sound booth was inserted at the rear of the balcony and over 800 new seats were installed.   On the exterior, the historic terra cotta and brick facade was rehabilitated. A new plaza, entry doors and lighting were added to give the theater a stronger presence on the campus.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]...

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September 6, 2018
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by John W

Gonzaga Student Commons

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Gonzaga College High School Washington, DC Award of Merit for Excellence in Design, Inform Awards   As part of the second phase of campus renovations at Gonzaga College High School, GBR Architects created this new center for student life within the “found space” of a gritty service courtyard. The new infill building also extends across the face of the adjacent athletic center with a shared entrance façade that defines the western edge of the main campus quadrangle. With its open steel frame, exposed ductwork and clean modern details, the inserted building offers a visual counterpoint to the heavy masonry construction that characterizes this historic urban campus.   Inside the space, three historic buildings form the edges of an open commons area set on a mezzanine above an expanded dining hall. Clerestory windows bring in abundant daylight and the raw character of the old courtyard is recalled through the use of exposed brick, concrete, structural steel, and...

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September 6, 2018
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by John W

Lab School Master Plan

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] The Lab School of Washington Washington, DC   The Lab School of Washington serves students with learning differences through an experiential, art-based educational model that seeks alternatives to traditional classroom instruction. Despite this unique approach, much of its core academic space was being housed ad-hoc in a former dormitory building. In conjunction with their strategic planning, GBR was engaged to reevaluate and reimagine the school’s facilities to properly support its mission.   This planning process began with a highly collaborative charrette that invited a broad cross section of stakeholders to imagine an ideal campus for The Lab School. At that same time, GBR performed a campus-wide space audit. Working with the client, a series of classroom prototypes and benchmarks were established to clearly delineate the delta between the current campus and the ideal state.   The campus planning was guided by the need to create a clear and appropriate identity for each of the school’s three academic...

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September 6, 2018
in
by John W

German School Science Building

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] German School Washington Potomac, Maryland LEED Gold® Merit Award, Washington, DC AIA UnBuilt Awards   This unique independent school serves the local German language community in the DC Metro area with a curriculum according to German educational standards. The new building provides modern laboratories and support spaces as the new home for the science department. The building and surrounding landscape design reflect the school's commitment to healthy and enriching places for learning while keeping utility and maintenance costs at a minimum. The building further synthesizes the school’s science program with the tangible and quantifiable building technology by embracing light, thermodynamics, acoustics, and environmental and hydrological systems as core design parameters.   The completed facility achieved LEED gold level certification. It is the first phase of a two phased campus enlargement to create a stand-alone upper school. The original campus was organized in a series of terraced levels. The new structure bridges two of these levels to provide an...

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September 6, 2018
in
by sean

Lab School Student Commons

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] The Lab School of Washington Washington, DC   This project entailed the adaptive reuse of an antiquated cafeteria and commercial kitchen. Although centrally located, the space was entirely under-utilized. With the majority of students spending their lunchtime in the classroom, the cafeteria space was primarily used for dance, creative movement, and gymnastics. Given its central location, students would still often circulate through the space at various times of the school day. The location, and its proximity to the outdoor courtyard, provided an opportunity to recapture this area for a broader and more appropriate use.   GBR Architects transformed the dark and unwelcoming space into a café-like Commons to be used throughout the day for a variety of activities: lunchtime for students, gatherings before and after school, additional instructional and presentation space, meetings with faculty and parents, and extra-curricular events like dances and small assemblies. Furniture was selected to provide for maximum flexibility, including a custom-designed...

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September 1, 2018
in
by John W

Lab School Library

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] The Lab School of Washington Washington, DC Award of Merit, AIA Northern Virginia   The Lab School Washington serves students with learning differences through a unique art-based education that seeks alternatives to traditional classroom instruction. This project provided a new library and media center that facilitates multiple methods for learning while still celebrating the importance of books as part of a complete educational experience. Three existing classrooms were set aside to create a library of 4000 volumes. While budget and space constraints were tight, the real challenge was designing a library for a student population for whom words can be indecipherable puzzles and libraries a mystery.   Careful study of the space needed for circulation and book perusal revealed that double-sided rotating bookcases would hold twice the amount of books and also eliminate clutter.  These rotating bookcases also proved to be enjoyable and appealing to the children.  The optimized bookcase arrangement coincided with the buildings existing...

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July 15, 2018
in
by John W

Cantwell and Ruesch Academic Center

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Gonzaga College High School Washington, DC   Founded in 1821, this prominent Jesuit high school commissioned GBR Architects to conduct a comprehensive update of its urban campus. The resulting master plan envisioned a series of renovations and additions to provide new academic space, to update technology, and to create a friendly, safe environment by unifying the campus landscape and creating connective spaces between buildings.   The initial phase of the campus update renovated two historic buildings that years ago had been acquired by Gonzaga: the 1903 Cantwell Hall (a former grade school), and the former Notre Dame Academy for Girls (now Ruesch Hall).  These buildings, with their main facades and street entrances fronting K Street NW and North Capital Street, had their backs turned to the Gonzaga campus on Eye Street. Back doors were used as cramped inlets with student foot traffic traversing an urban alley and in-between the cars of parking lot.   To resolve these...

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