The wide-ranging project draws on many different facets of Keast & Hood’s expertise, from design for new construction to preservation and structural enhancement.
Owned and operated by Harvard University, the Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection occupies a 19-acre campus in the Georgetown area of Washington, D.C.
The complex project began with structural design for a new, 45,000-square-foot library building. The flat-plate concrete structure nestles into the banks of a steeply sloping dell. Housing both conventional and compact stacks, reading areas, and offices, the library’s structural design had to accommodate a very deep basement and consequent groundwater and underpinning issues. The design features multiple terraces and setbacks in the floor plates to enable the building to meld with its landscape. The library is clad in red brick and limestone to complement the historic Main House.
Renovation of the historic 60,000-sf 1801 Federal style Main House included accessibility and mechanical systems improvements throughout the building, requiring extensive structural work. Structural design also was provided for a 10,000-sf Gardeners’ Court central utility and maintenance building and more than 500 feet of walkable, cast-in-place concrete tunnel for utility distribution throughout the campus. The final component of the project was the renovation of several small campus out-buildings designed in the 1920s by McKim, Mead & White.
The wide-ranging project draws on many different facets of Keast & Hood’s expertise, from design for new construction to preservation and structural enhancement.
Owned and operated by Harvard University, the Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection occupies a 19-acre campus in the Georgetown area of Washington, D.C.
The complex project began with structural design for a new, 45,000-square-foot library building. The flat-plate concrete structure nestles into the banks of a steeply sloping dell. Housing both conventional and compact stacks, reading areas, and offices, the library’s structural design had to accommodate a very deep basement and consequent groundwater and underpinning issues. The design features multiple terraces and setbacks in the floor plates to enable the building to meld with its landscape. The library is clad in red brick and limestone to complement the historic Main House.
Renovation of the historic 60,000-sf 1801 Federal style Main House included accessibility and mechanical systems improvements throughout the building, requiring extensive structural work. Structural design also was provided for a 10,000-sf Gardeners’ Court central utility and maintenance building and more than 500 feet of walkable, cast-in-place concrete tunnel for utility distribution throughout the campus. The final component of the project was the renovation of several small campus out-buildings designed in the 1920s by McKim, Mead & White.
CLIENT: Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates, Inc. (now VSBA, LLC)
LOCATION: Washington, DC
TYPE: Academic, Cultural, Library, SERVICES: New Construction, Renovation, MATERIALS: SUSTAINABILITY: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Completed library photography © Matt Wargo
