Relocation of the Atlantic Council
Washington, D.C
Interior/tenant improvement
Sent by: DAVIS construction
Region: ENR Est
Owner: Atlantic Council
Main design company: Michael Graves
General contractor: DAVIS construction
Structural Engineer: SK&A Structural Engineers
MEP Engineer: Loring Engineers
Designing and building the $18.3 million headquarters for a think tank that promotes US leadership and international cooperation and hosted top-level dignitaries, delegates and speakers required extraordinary structural intervention and precise coordination. The five-story, 75,000-square-foot renovation saw the construction of a two-story multipurpose hall, the heart of the organization’s event programming, and an outdoor terrace for receptions and diplomatic meetings. A bespoke interconnecting staircase links the multi-purpose room floor to the upper level, where there is a sky lounge terrace.
Creating the two-story, 3,000-square-foot multipurpose room required the removal of a 40-foot by 80-foot slab section. To address fall protection and debris control, the project team enclosed the work area with full temporary barriers, including a custom air filtration system to mitigate silica dust and prevent contamination of the elevator shaft. A field engineer monitored slab deflection in real time during post-tensioning beam installation, ensuring structural integrity and worker safety. Four cast-in-place post-tensioned concrete beams, each poured with a well-orchestrated truck sequencing plan, now span this gap.
The five-story facility includes a custom-made interconnecting staircase that links the multipurpose room floor to the next level.
Photo courtesy of Davis Construction
Julie Varghese, chief operating officer of the Atlantic Council, said the team “surprised us with their experience, organization and professionalism, but also with their camaraderie to partner on real-time adjustments, both large and small.”
Adjacent to the multipurpose room is a high-rise balcony 11 stories above grade, constructed from a cantilevered scaffolding platform suspended from the 10th floor. Eliminating the vertical bracing and ensuring uninterrupted access for building occupants allowed for the installation of upward concrete and steel beams, finish work and access to the terrace perimeter without touching the building’s third floor public amenity terrace. The phasing and sequencing dictated the weight limits of the structure, as millimeter-level alignment with the existing curtain wall systems was required to construct the balcony.
Despite a three-month delay, the project was delivered on time and on budget.
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