Letter
Dear Ms. Wright:
In its meeting of 21 May, the Commission of Fine Arts reviewed a concept submission for two new residential buildings on Parcel O of the Southeast Federal Center (The Yards) at 4th, Water, and Tingey Streets, SE. In accordance with the review process established in the Memorandum of Agreement between the General Services Administration and the Commission of Fine Arts regarding the redevelopment of the Southeast Federal Center, the Commission approved the concept designs for both Parcels O-1 and O-2 as its last review for these projects and provided the following comments.
The Commission members expressed appreciation for the thorough and well-organized presentations, which demonstrated how the existing historic fabric of The Yards can be used to inform the design of the proposed buildings. Observing that the large structures are successfully articulated as smaller volumes that present a varied streetscape and a human scale, they commended the designers for their palette of materials and inventive solutions to form a multi-layered base to the buildings that expresses the program of use. As the design is further developed, the Commission recommended that the placementof the trees in the south courtyard be carefully studied to acknowledge likely pedestrian movements and the presence of the fence that separates the private and public landscapes.
The Commission looks forward to reviewing future submissions for the continued development of The Yards. Please coordinate the next submission with the staff, which as always, is available to assist you.
Sincerely,
/s/Thomas E. Luebke, FAIA
Secretary
Mina Wright, Director
Office of Planning and Design Quality
U.S. General Services Administration
301 7th Street, SW
Washington, DC 20407-0001
cc: Gary Handel, Handel Architects
Scott Johnson, Johnson Fain
David Maloney, D.C. Historic Preservation Office