DMSAS Newsletter, Volume 39

Nicholas S. Zeppos Residential College – A Closer Look

As we reported in our previous newsletter, our Vanderbilt University project Nicholas S. Zeppos Residential College is now occupied with students. We were able to get to Nashville and capture the collegiate gothic building in its early fall glory. In addition to housing 340 undergraduates, faculty, and graduate student advisors, Zeppos has a dining hall, servery, a great room, lounge, study spaces, meeting spaces and apartments for visiting scholars.

DMSAS was the Design Architect, Hastings Architecture was the Architect of Record and the General Contractor was Layton Construction.

Photo Credit: Hall + Merrick Photography

The Waycroft Wins Two Awards!

David M. Schwarz Architects to Welcome 2020 Travel Fellows for a Virtual Internship in January

We are planning to welcome our four 2020 travel fellows for a 2 week internship in late January. The firm has a long standing program of Travel Fellowships with architecture programs at four institutions: the University of Maryland, The Catholic University of America, Yale University and University of Notre Dame. We usually host each of Travel Fellow for a 10 week summer internship here in the office, but for the first time in the program’s 15 year history we cancelled in-person internships for this past summer due to the pandemic.

Principal Steve Knight along with Associates Mark Elliott and Dean Reineking are planning a two week program of virtual get-togethers, informative presentations and design studies in an effort to capture the best of the internship experience. We look forward to welcoming Tia Williams, Patrick Vercio, Jemimah Asamoah and Joshua Soares in January!

Project Updates

Chevy Chase Lake

Chevy Chase, Maryland

Building B2 has topped out and wood framing for Building B3 is complete. Exterior finishes and interior utility work continue installation. Building B2 officially became The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Chevy Chase in October with the sales center slated to open in January, and Building B3 will be known as The Barrett. Building B1, The Claude, is expected to start construction before the year is out.

Vanderbilt University West End Tower

Nashville, Tennessee

Construction continues! Exterior masonry cladding on the base and middle is complete and work on the ornate limestone crown has started. Work on the interior is proceeding and the 22-story 330’ tall tower is targeting May 2021 for completion.

Vanderbilt University Residential College B

Nashville, Tennessee

Vanderbilt University Residential College C

Nashville, Tennessee

Phase IV of our residential college project is wrapping up construction documents. Here is a sneak peek with two of our recent renderings.

Le Guanahani

St. Barths, FWI

Le Guanahani resort in St. Barths, is slated to re-open to the public in the Spring of 2021, re-flagged as Rosewood Le Guanahani, the newest addition to the Rosewood ultra-luxury portfolio. This secluded tropical boutique resort was heavily damaged in 2017 by Hurricane Irma.

The significant renovation includes an entire new beach experience with a new restaurant, lounge, boutique, and “feet in the sand” outdoor dining all clustered around an enlarged pool and deck. There are several new rooms, suites, and private pools, and improvements undertaken at all rooms. The secluded Spa has been fully renovated and a new fitness center has been added. All new infrastructure is going in and the road network, guest paths and landscape have all been upgraded.

Huntsville Amphitheater

Huntsville, Alabama

Funding for the Huntsville Amphitheater project was approved by the City of Huntsville, AL  This 8000-seat venue, to be operated by Venue Group, is slated to deliver in 2022, and will certainly be an impactful cultural and economic boon for the City. Read more about the City’s approval here, and a teaser video about the project here.

Riverside Station Mixed-Use Development

Newton, Massachusetts

On October 19, Newton, Massachusetts’s City Council unanimously approved zoning changes and a special permit for MARK Development LLC‘s million-square-foot transit-oriented project.

A team including David M. Schwarz Architects, Jeff Speck, and VHB, developed the 13-acre master plan over the past three years. The plan replaces a hotel and 935-stall surface parking lot for the adjacent MBTA Riverside station. The revitalized area will include new 10-building neighborhood incorporating office, housing, retail, and a variety of public space. Read more about the project here.

St. Elmo Apartments

Bethesda, Maryland

Design of this 22-story mixed use apartment building continues in the Construction Documents phase. DMSAS completed our exterior Design Development package at the end of June and is finalizing material selections. Construction is scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2021.

St. Johns College – Mellon Hall

Annapolis, Maryland

DMSAS has started Schematic Design on several renovation projects within historic Mellon Hall (one of only a few Richard Neutra’s buildings on the east coast) at St. John’s College in Annapolis, MD. The primary goals of the project are to update several student/ public spaces, and to add multi-functional spaces in support of SJC’s curriculum and Arts’ Program. While COVID-19 has changed the process, we have continued to have design meetings and have assembled a Design Team.

CCMC – Prosper Hospital

ProSPer, Texas

DMSAS is continuing to coordinate the exterior design of the new Cook Children’s Medical Center Hospital in Prosper, TX. Site work has started, and the Team looks forward to breaking ground in the coming weeks.

In And Out of the Office

Fall Design Fete 2020

Although it was not like past years, several of our team members participated in the AIA| DC and The Washington Architectural Foundation’s 2020 Fall Design Fete on October 30, of which we are proud sponsors. The annual event’s intent is to honor those individuals in our community that have elevated design. Thanks to AIA | DC for pulling together a fun event, complete with props and cocktails! Take a look at the program here.

Design Symposium 2020

Not to be deterred by Covid-19, DMSAS held their Sixth Design Symposium starting on October 30, and staggered over subsequent virtual meetings throughout November and December. The mini-sessions featured two parts: President Gregory Hoss led with an overview of our values, what we do and our design process. Founder David Schwarz presented a “stroll down memory lane” with the intent of sharing the history of the firm and our prominent projects.

Our Approach to Returning to the Office

David M. Schwarz Architects is not that different from most other offices in our region. We have had to respond to and accommodate regulations, guidelines, and recommendations issued by the District, Maryland, Virginia, the Centers for Disease Control, the World Health Organization, and others. Staying current and having to interpret the information provided by three jurisdictions, the two leading health agencies, and industry organizations has been challenging and sometimes confusing. But, with a program of following best practices and timely and consistent communications and guidance to our staff, we have had no reported cases in our DMSAS family. We are very grateful for this and know that this is a direct result of all our staff taking this Pandemic seriously and following guidelines at home as well as at the office. On March 16^th we began mandatory telework for three months using the industry toolbox for remote access and interaction including VPN, BIM360, Zoom, Slack, email, etc. As a highly collaborative office where Architecture is considered a team sport, there were a few challenges. For example, material finishes were nearly impossible to review online as their rendering on screens often varied greatly from reality.

On June 22, in conjunction with DC’s phased reopening, DMSAS began our Phase 1 of returning to the office. We began with a limited number of employees who were interested in returning and with project necessity. Attendance was pre-scheduled and with strict guidelines and safety procedures in place including occupancy tracking, staggered schedules, and new desk arrangements that ensured proper social distancing. Reviewing materials outdoors in natural light is nothing new to architects, so this problem was easy to solve. This initial return to office went so well that on November 16, after five months of our Phase 1, we moved to our Phase 2. We have encouraged staff who could safely get to work and felt comfortable in the office to come to work a day or so a week. Having an open studio presented a few hurdles, but nothing that lots of plexiglass, air purifiers, directional signs, and occupancy plans could not take care of. Our most recent challenge has been planning for the holidays. For our office, anyone traveling out of state or hosting people from out of state must wait at least 72 hours, be tested, and receive a negative result before returning to the office. All the hard work and planning seems to have paid off as 35 people have safely worked at the office at one point or another since June. As we go forward, we will endeavor to always keep our staff safe while delivering the architectural services for which we are known.