Headquarters & Office Buildings
The Avenue
+ expand detailWashington D.C., USA
1.3 million square feet / 124,000 square meters
2011
The Avenue is a mixed-use development designed as part of the master plan for The George Washington University’s Foggy Bottom campus. The development creates a gateway to the campus and the Foggy Bottom and West End neighborhoods. Envisioned as an urban town center, The Avenue includes a Whole Foods grocery store, retail shops, apartments, an office building targeting a Gold LEED rating, and outdoor gathering spaces.
The 1-hectare (2.6-acre) development is adjacent to the Foggy Bottom-GWU Metro station. The shape, slope, and orientation of its site, adjacencies to the neighborhood, and the combination of office, retail and residential components influenced the overall site design strategy. A 10-story, Class A office building expressed as two towers acknowledges the frontage of prestigious Pennsylvania Avenue to the north, while modulated massing on historic Washington Circle respects the 1791 L’Enfant plan for Washington D.C. To the south, bordering 23rd, 22nd and I streets, a 12-story residential building is set back to form a pedestrian retail plaza connected to the Metro station. The distinct façade expressions of each element are both contemporary and sympathetic to their surroundings.
The development creates a series of new public spaces shared by the university and the wider community. An open public garden allows pedestrian access through the center of the site, connecting 23rd Street to the office building atrium lobby on Pennsylvania Avenue. An interior garden offers a more intimate sanctuary for the apartments’ residents. The landscape is enhanced with flowering trees, fountains and seating throughout. Parking is provided by a five-level, below-grade garage with full loading dock for semi-tractor trailers.
The new buildings and public spaces of The Avenue anchor the George Washington campus to the surrounding community, provide a vibrant new shopping street, and contribute to the urban fabric of the city.
