Transcript ottawa street power station rehabilitation

OTTAWA STREET POWER STATION REHABILITATION
AIA Michigan 2013 Honor Awards Program
Category: Building
Project Statement
Ottawa Street Power Station Rehabilitation
Accident Fund Holdings (client)
Christman Capitol Development Company (developer)
Lansing’s Ottawa Street Power Station, located on the
Grand River not far from the commercial center and
state capitol, is a unique Art Deco masterpiece.
Constructed in 1939 and 1946 as the region’s primary
coal-fired electrical generation plant, the nine-story
building’s exterior masonry color rises from black at its
base through reds and oranges up to gold at its peak,
turning the entire building into a stylized flame
symbolizing the combustion of coal. Decommissioned
in 1992, the building stood purposeless, challenging
the design, development, and construction
communities to find a strategy for reusing its largely
floorless, 164 foot tall tower. Rising to that challenge,
the design team, developers, contractors, and
building users created a national corporate
headquarters, fitting 122,000sf of Class A office space
into the historic building and accommodating another
105,000sf in a compatible addition. Working closely
together, they delivered the project on schedule and
within the original budget, returning the building to its
status as a local landmark.
CHALLENGES & OPPORTUNITIES
• A riverfront site with significant pollution in a flood
plain
• Views of building disrupted by later additions and
adjacent construction
• Programmatic need for nearly 50% more floor area
than building offered
• Significant cracking and movement of the exterior
masonry
• Rusted, energy-inefficient windows
• No usable floor area in the former boiler stack
• Showplace turbine hall with significant volume, but
limited floor area
• Exposed masonry walls with no insulation
• High style historic entry lobby hidden behind
inappropriate alterations
• Visually intriguing steel structure with no fire
protection
Project Statement (continued)
Ottawa Street Power Station Rehabilitation
Accident Fund Holdings (client)
Christman Capitol Development Company (developer)
DESIGN RESOLUTION
• Sculpted site to shift flood plan away from building
• Created pedestrian spaces adjacent to the river,
established a pedestrian link to the adjacent street
• “C” shaped addition that reflects scale and
materials of original building and established visual
connection between new and old
• Extensive restoration of the complex masonry
exterior, installation of new energy efficient
windows with custom details to closely match look
of original windows
• Created Revit model using laser point cloud
technology, precluding dangerous and timeconsuming field survey
• Removed excess original structure and installed
significant structure to support new floor plates
• Hung new floors in turbine hall for necessary floor
area while protecting the historic glazed tile walls,
retained sense of space’s volume
• Engineered insulation of the exterior masonry walls
to minimize vapor damage the walls; exposed
masonry at exterior walls
• Reclaimed original Art Deco lobby; museumquality restoration of unique lobby elements
• Created contemporary office space while retaining
structural elements and industrial details
SUSTAINABILITY
The design team successfully incorporated
sustainability into the design process to achieve
LEED Gold certification. The building’s sustainable
design features include 41% less water usage than
typical new developments, a raised floor mechanical
system distribution that gives employees
temperature control in their workspaces, and low
emitting interior finishes and furnishings. The design
takes every advantage of the ample daylight to
lessen energy use and ensure that every workspace
benefits from ambient light and striking exterior
views.
The project connects the heart of downtown
Lansing with its scenic riverfront.
Before
South and West Elevations
A contemporary design vocabulary for the
addition provides a vibrant visual
relationship between the old and the new.
D
Before
The scale and location of the addition reinforces the scale of the historic building while
emphasizing the drama of its tower. The dark stone base and vibrant orange brick of the
addition reinterprets the design of the original building while remaining respectful of its
iconic status.
North and East Elevations
Before
The former service entrance was
transformed to create an entry
court where the historic building
and its new addition meet.
A glass atrium connects the two
buildings and opens a path from
the street to the riverfront.
A skylight atrium unites the historic building to the new addition,
functionally and visually connecting the old and the new.
The restored original
exterior windows
now present interior
views of the atrium
and addition.
Skylights at the
atrium echo the
window pattern of
the original building
while offering a
dramatic view of the
historic tower.
Transformation of the
former coal yard into a plaza
visually and functionally
extends the employee
dining room and creates a
riverfront space for public
events.
Before
Before
Careful detailing
of the new and
old beam
intersections
avoided damage
to decorative
elements of the
historic glazed
terra cotta walls.
New floors provide necessary
additional office space, but
maintain the original turbine
hall’s sense of scale by
hanging from new beams.
A large industrial crane
and steel doors are
reminders of the
building’s original use.
Before
Brick walls and exposed
original steel framing
throughout the building
are reminders of its original
industrial use.
Exposed brick maximizes the visual impact of public spaces and circulation
areas. Exterior walls in other locations are insulated with an engineered system to ensure
that the walls are not damaged by condensation. Mechanical and electrical distribution
through a raised floor system optimizes energy efficiency and user comfort.
The Art Deco
lobby with its unique
steel doors was carefully
restored to its historic
appearance.
New
Bldg
Historic Building
J
ACCIDENT FUND NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS
ACCIDENT FUND NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS
ACCIDENT FUND
NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS
The project transformed a polluted industrial site and
obsolete power station into corporate headquarters
with outdoor amenities and a public river walk that
connects two city parks.
Before
South and East Elevations