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Photo © Jeffrey Sauers
“The Anacostia [River] had a big influence [on the Although the apartment building presents itself
project’s design],” said Laurence Caudle, AIA, a principal along First Street as a basic rectangular form, its floor plate
and director of housing at Hickok Cole. “There was a is actually U-shaped, with the First Street façade forming
quality of light because of the Anacostia that you could the bottom of the U and the building’s two side wings
see and almost feel. We also knew that our building would extending away from First Street, toward the center of
be seen from afar before future Navy Yard phases [on the the block. A U-shaped floor plate is a traditional scheme
other side of First Street] were built. So the biggest [design] for Washington-area apartment buildings that increases
moves we made were what we refer to as the horizontal natural light and ventilation for building residents. In
bays along the residential façade. The ins and outs and this case, the arrangement created a tranquil courtyard
metal-and-glass nature of those bays created a reflective between the two wings that is isolated from the traffic
quality that reminded us of the water.” noise of the ballpark district.
The building’s response to the nearby waterway is The street-level entry was made relatively narrow so
also evident in the non-glass exterior surfaces. “We used as to help maximize leasable commercial space along
high-performance thin precast [concrete] panels from a First Street, which is a primary corridor for people walking
company called TAKTL,” Caudle said. “The panels are a between the ballpark and the nearby Navy Yard-Ballpark
denim blue color with a wave pattern that was inspired Metro station. Consequently, the entry uses height rather
by our proximity to the river.” than width to generate a sense of grandeur. The two-story
The apartment structure “is a mid-block building space features a prominent metal-and-glass stairway
flanked by hotels [the Residence Inn on one end and a leading up to the building’s second-level leasing office,
second hotel on the other side] that have vertical and is surfaced partly with seven-inch-tall horizontal
proportions, so we chose to create a very strong horizontal planks of milk-washed reclaimed oak—a somewhat
expression” in the apartment building’s design, Caudle rustic-looking material that complements the entry’s
continued. “To emphasize the horizontality, we put more refined surfaces and can also be taken as a
continuous balconies every third floor rather than the maritime or boardwalk reference.
ubiquitous vertical stack of balconies you see on most The apartment building includes several amenities
residential buildings.” In total, about 40 percent of the common to modern Washington luxury apartment
building’s units have balconies. “The primary expression buildings, but boasts one that takes unique advantage of
of the façade is provided by the bright white railings in the project’s location: the southern end of the building’s
various patterns and densities, emphasizing the horizon- rooftop area incorporates an elevated viewing stand that
tality of the building and referencing [a] nautical image.” permits building residents to watch games at the ballpark
Photo © Jeffrey Sauers
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