2001 K Street

To vertically expand the 2000 L Street tower from 8 to 12 stories, we had to demolish the existing 9th story penthouse. The issue? The penthouse was the hub for all of the mechanical equipment that kept the office building running. And the tenants, of course, still required electricity and working elevators. To ensure that the tenants could conduct business as usual, we had to get creative with our approach. This meant coming up with an alternative solution to mechanically supply the building while phasing the removal of the penthouse equipment. Ultimately, we installed temporary mechanical systems - a short-term fix that actually preserved budget until the new penthouse was built.

Typically, massive structural upgrades - like vertical expansion- are conducted on traditional buildings made of reinforced concrete. But 2000 L Street was not a traditional building. Rather, it was built with post-tension concrete slabs and beams. This made the job signficantly more complicated because, unlike a hole drilled into reinforced concrete, a hole drilled into post-tension concrete can impact an entire section of the building causing a potentially dangerous situation. To prevent this, we meticulously maintained integrity in the concrete slabs while selectively creating openings for the elevator shafts, mechanical shafts and mechanical risers. In addition, to upgrade the foundation and lateral stability we erected new shear-walls through the existing building, further requiring precision demolition of existing post-tension concrete slabs.

Originally built in the 60s, the 2000 L Street facade was made of precast and punch windows - an aged look that would've clashed with the modern upgrade. To provide a complete transformation, our scope entailed fully removing the existing façade and replacing it with six unique curtain walls. Because this was an occupied renovation we used temporary weather resistant partitions that separated tenants from the façade replacement. We broke the job down into quadrants - replacing two quarters of the façade at any given time. We also coordinated closely with the building management to move tenants back 5' from the exterior wall and created swing spaces as needed. Constant communication was absolutely critical, as was sticking to the plan we carefully orchestrated during the pre-construction phase.

Our work on the 12-story atrium is in its infancy. When complete, the iconic piece of architecture will connect 2000 L Street to the adjacent 2001 K Street. Designed by Pelli Clarke Pelle Architects, in collaboration with FOX Architects, the atrium is unlike anything that exists in the District. Featuring a 13-story point-support glass wall and skylight, it will set the standard for trophy office buildings in the region. But before we get ahead of ourselves, significant structural and mechanical work is required to marry the two buildings through this atrium. It's no small order, but our work thus far has prepared us for anything.