DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA YOUTH CENTER

 

LAUREL, MD

Jonathan Nelson Construction Management

Building Statistics

General Building Information

 

 

 

 

 

 

Project Team

 

 

 

 

 

Architecture

The youth center is a rehabilitation center for juvenile offenders. In order to enhance its mission, the center is designed as a campus for education and development of the youth. Five buildings are arranged around a central courtyard. Three housing units will house up to 20 students each, a combined gymnasium and warehouse provides recreation and the campus administration building includes spaces for admin, medical, social, food and educational services. The buildings have a colored CMU and stucco exterior with several storefronts and metal roofing to eliminate the punitive feeling. The facility also includes shared, open spaces for the students, a theatre, football and baseball field and a track.

Building Codes:            American Correctional Association Standards for Juvenile                                           Correctional Facilities
Zoning:                          The property is a federal grant to the DC government and                                           lies with in MD.
Historical Requirements:        
             The entire property contains many, unused buildings which were deemed              historical by Maryland Historical Society. The new buildings were not              subject to certain design requirements but a loading dock in the warehouse              had to be redesigned to preserve the nearby Azalea cottage

Building Envelope:      
             Roofing systems:
                          Standing seam roof on metal deck and open web bar joists
                          Built up PVC roof on metal deck and open web bar joists
                          Standing seam roof on purlins at Gymnasium / Warehouse
                          Exposed wood trusses and decking at Housing Units
             Wall Systems:
                          Load bearing, fully grouted CMU back up walls
                          Colored and split face CMU façade up to 12’
                          Stucco on dens glass sheathing above 12’
                          Storefront at major entrances
                          2 sets of clerestories
                          Glass block wall at Student Commons
                          Metal Siding on pre-engineered Gym / Warehouse

Building Statistics Part II

Construction

Delays in the schedule required excavation, foundation, SOG and masonry work to be done during the winter.  Winter weather decreased productivity for other trades because the building was not closed in until the spring.  A Design-Build delivery and LSDBE requirements meant a longer submittal process for subcontractor shop drawings and increased general conditions cost. The facility’s diverse functions and architectural design required different finish schemes, materials and fixtures throughout building and an extensive security system including CCTV, sally ports and card readers. Because of the accelerated schedule, weekly subcontractor meetings are held to coordinate their efforts.

 

Electrical

DC Youth Center has a 480 V 3 phase 2000 Amp service located in the utility yard outside the Gym / Warehouse. A 500 kW diesel generator feeds the Uninterrupted Power Supply. There are an additional 3 electrical rooms in the Campus Administration building and one in each Housing Unit.

 

Lighting

The primary lighting system for the CA building is 2’ x 4’ recessed fluorescent fixtures. In spaces directly accessible to the youth, vandal resistant fluorescent fixtures are used. The theatre and student commons have dimmable compact fluorescent fixtures. The Housing Units have 1’ x 4’ fluorescent fixtures mounted directly to the underside of the trusses and tamper proof LED night lights in each of the bedrooms. All exterior fixtures use metal halide bulbs.

 

Mechanical

Mechanical spaces are located throughout the buildings with equipment in each of the Housing Units, G/W, the southwest corner of CA, over the kitchen, behind the theatre. 56 Variable Air Volume boxes serve as the heating and cooling system. A gas fired furnace with direct exchange cooling and an energy recovery ventilator enhances the efficiency of the system.

 

Structural

Foundation system is strip footings and stem wall 2.5 to 8’ below grade. Column pads are 3 to 8’ square and thickened to 9 to 16”. Exterior 8” masonry walls are load bearing with grouted connections. Interior HSS columns and W shape girders support 18 to 28” deep open web bar joists and W shapes for sloped and flat roofs in CA. Steel deck and pumped concrete support mezzanines and flat roof slabs. The primary roofing system in the Housing Units is exposed wood trusses and 3” decking. The Gym / Warehouse is a pre-engineered steel frame building with a sloped roof.

 

Other Building Systems

 

Fire Protection

Each building is out fitted with wet standpipes. Typical assemblies provide a 1 hour fire rating. In CA, the building is sectioned off with a 4 hour wall that divides the building into two sections. The G/W has a 3 hour masonry wall between the gym and warehouse.

 

Telecommunications

The project has CATV, telephone and intercom services throughout the facility.

 

Security System

The security system has a main control station, dozens of electronically controlled doors and motion sensitive surveillance cameras.

 

Façade            

The façade of the buildings are composed of different materials that tie into each other and the roofing system. From the ground to approximately 10’ in elevation the façade is colored CMU block. Above 10’ and on the soffits is stucco on a metal stud framing. In areas like the clerestories, the stucco meets PVC roofing. At main entrances to buildings, aluminum and glass storefront is used. The CA has a curved glass block wall. The G/W has metal siding above 10’ instead of stucco.

This page was last updated on October 13, 2008 by Jonathan Nelson and is hosted by the AE Department ©2009