In June 2020, Johns Hopkins University completed its $372.5 million acquisition of the Newseum in Washington, D.C., which had closed the year before. A $275 million renovation of that building resulted in the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center, a higher education facility that brings together many of the universityâs divisions within a building redesigned as a vertical campus for transparency and sustainability.
The 435,000-ft facility opened last August at 555 Pennsylvania Avenue at the heart of the nationâs capital. It is anchored by Johns Hopkinsâ School of Advanced International Studies, its Carey Business School, its Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, the Peabody Institute, and the newly launched School of Government and Policy. The Centerâs mission, stated Johns Hopkins, is to âconnect the worlds of research and policy, educate future leaders and innovators, convene a range of viewpoints to foster discovery and dialogue, and bring a fresh infusion of artistic expression.â
More than 3,000 students, faculty, researchers, and staff come through this 10-story building daily. The Center allocates 300,000 sf of its interior space to learning, with 38 high-tech classrooms of varying capacities. On the east side of the buildingâs seven-story-tall interior atrium, a 20x27-ft âfloatingâ glass classroom hangs from a pair of bridge girders. On the west side of the atrium rises a 70-ft treehouse-like stacked assemblage of classrooms and open lounges.
The atrium is anchored by a sloped seating area called The Beach, a nod to the grassy space at Johns Hopkinsâ Homewood campus in Baltimore.
Ennead gets another shot at an old project
Inside the Center as well are the Irene and Richard Frary Library on its second floor, an event space called The Link on its fourth floor, a 3,350-sf multimedia suite, a fitness and wellness center, a lounge with 435 seats, and a 375-seat theater with a 640-sf stage and 7,000 sf of backstage support. Space has been earmarked for a future restaurant and café.
The buildingâs exterior is encased in an enlarged glass façade and a 50-ft curtainwall that faces Pennsylvania Avenue; pink marble cladding, and 16,888 sf of roof terraces. âAs architects, it is a rare opportunity to revisit an earlier design and reimagine it for an entirely new purpose,â said Richard Olcott, FAIA FAAR, Design Partner at Ennead Architects, this Centerâs exterior architect, and the original architect of the Newseum.
This projectâs building team also included SmithGroup (AOR, lighting design, fire protection, life safety engineering), Rockwell Group (interior architect), Clark Construction (GC), Wiles Mensch (CE), LERA Consulting Structural Engineers (SE), WSP (MEP engineer, fire protection, life safety engineer), Oehme, van Sweden (landscape architect), Babich Acoustics (acoustics), and BrightTree Studios (A/V). MGAC provided project and cost management support.
A reduced carbon footprint
Â
Concerning the atrium, Rockwell Group identifies two key insertions: the âRoom Stairâ that wraps around the buildingâs glass rooms and lounges; and the âRoom Bridgeâ that houses classrooms and lounge spaces, and bridges both sides of the building.
The building team eliminated 77.8 tons of carbon dioxide from the construction process by using CarbonCure concrete. The team also recycled or diverted from landfills 96.6 percent of the projectâs construction waste that, according to SmithGroup, included demolishing 50,000 sf of interior floorplates to make way for 90,000-sf floorplates, and removing the Newseumâs marble exterior panels.
Related Stories
Higher Education | Feb 9, 2024
Disability and architecture: ADA and universal design at college campuses
To help people with disabilities feel part of the campus community, higher education institutions and architects must strive to create settings that not only adhere to but also exceed ADA guidelines.
University Buildings | Jan 18, 2024
Houstonâs Rice University opens the largest research facility on its core campus
Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), the 251,400-sf building provides students and researchers with state-of-the-art laboratories, classrooms, offices, and a cafe, in addition to multiple gathering spaces.
Sponsored | BD+C University Course | Jan 17, 2024
Waterproofing deep foundations for new construction
This continuing education course, by Walter P Moore's Amos Chan, P.E., BECxP, CxA+BE, covers design considerations for below-grade waterproofing for new construction, the types of below-grade systems available, and specific concerns associated with waterproofing deep foundations.
University Buildings | Jan 15, 2024
The death of single-use university buildings
As institutions aim to improve the lives of their students and the spaces they inhabit, flexible university buildings may provide an all-in-one solution.
Designers | Jan 3, 2024
Designing better built environments for a neurodiverse world
For most of human history, design has mostly considered âtypical usersâ who are fully able-bodied without clinical or emotional disabilities. The problem with this approach is that it offers a limited perspective on how space can positively or negatively influence someone based on their physical, mental, and sensory abilities.
University Buildings | Dec 8, 2023
Yale University breaks ground on nation's largest Living Building student housing complex
A groundbreaking on Oct. 11 kicked off a project aiming to construct the largest Living Building Challenge-certified residence on a university campus. The Living Village, a 45,000 sf home for Yale University Divinity School graduate students, âwill make an ecological statement about the need to build in harmony with the natural world while training students to become âapostles of the environmentâ,â according to Bruner/Cott, which is leading the design team that includes Höweler + Yoon Architecture and Andropogon Associates.
Student Housing | Dec 5, 2023
October had fastest start ever for student housing preleasing
The student housing market for the upcoming 2024-2025 leasing season has started sooner and faster than ever.
University Buildings | Dec 5, 2023
The University of Cincinnati builds its largest classroom building to serve its largest college
The University of Cincinnatiâs recently completed Clifton Court Hall unifies the schoolâs social science programs into a multidisciplinary research and education facility. The 185,400-sf structure is the universityâs largest classroom building, serving its largest college, the College of Arts and Sciences.
Higher Education | Nov 21, 2023
UPitt at Bradford opens new Engineering & Information Technologies Building
The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford recently opened a new engineering and information technology building that adds urgently needed lab and instructional space to the campus.Â
Esports Arenas | Oct 10, 2023
Modular esports arena attracts more than gamers
As the esports market continues to grow to unprecedented numbers, more facilities are being developed by universities and real estate firms each year.