Dewberry, a privately held professional services firm, has announced that Capitol Crossing - 200 Massachusetts Avenue was recently awarded the 2020 Community Leader Award for Innovative Design, New Construction-Commercial by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) National Capital Region chapter. Dewberry provided mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineering (MEP) services for the LEED® Platinum project.
Award winners were announced at USGBC’s annual event, “A Midsummer Night’s Green” in July. The virtual event featured recognition for buildings across the Washington, D.C., area. Capitol Crossing is one of the largest active development projects in Washington, D.C., spanning three city blocks. Once complete, the development will feature five mixed-use buildings with office, residential, and retail space.
200 Massachusetts Ave. is the first of five buildings to be completed in the Capitol Crossing project. Dewberry provided MEP services for the 12-story building. The building was commended for design innovations resulting in part from its location and the challenges that the site provided, requiring construction directly over I-395.
Dewberry’s heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) design resulted in 15 points for energy optimization toward the LEED Platinum certification as the design demonstrated a 32.5% savings in energy over the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) baseline code-minimum requirements. HVAC enhancements that led to the high energy efficiency include a high-efficiency, low temperature, wide temperature-differential chilled water system with energy/heat recovery dedicated outdoor air systems (DOAS) units; low temperature air handling units; and a series of fan terminals to eliminate re-heat.
“We had the opportunity to solve some unique MEP challenges posed by working over a highway,” says Dewberry Senior Project Manager Kevin McNiff, PE. “We accomplished this by creating simplified and economical solutions. The MEP design also provided accommodations for multiple expansive restaurants on the first floor of 200 Massachusetts Ave. We are presently providing the MEP engineering services for the first two. In addition, the care we put into the design allows for maximum flexibility for two future buildings in the Center Block. Once completed, I believe that Capitol Crossing will be one of the most recognizable developments in the entire city, and I feel honored to have been part of it.”
In addition to the work performed on 200 and 250 Massachusetts Ave., Dewberry is also providing MEP services across the entire development.