3300 Whitehaven: British International School of Washington Gym
Project Location
Washington, DC
Project Type
– Education
– Sports, Recreation, and Wellness
– Renovation and Adaptive Re-use
Services
– Adaptive Reuse
Awards
– 2025 Excellence in Structural Engineering Award: Outstanding Building Renovation Under $25M
A new athletic facility for the British International School of Washington as part of the future redevelopment plan for the adjacent 3300 Whitehaven project
The Project
A new 16,000 SF athletic facility for the British International School of Washington built in a portion of the existing below-grade parking garage between the school building and an existing office building.
Structural Features
To create the required height in the gym, the construction team removed portions of existing two-way concrete garage slabs. They then strengthened and braced the remaining slabs and exterior walls. In addition, the team also relocated and extended an existing stair and air shaft and added a second egress stair.
A planted plaza area overlies the existing garage and new gym. The existing structure supporting this plaza could not remain due to the removal of support columns below, so the team designed a new steel-framed structure to span across the gym.
To complete the work with the least amount of disruption to the operating school, most of the construction took place within the existing garage building. The amount of time with the lid of the gym exposed was kept to a minimum.
Re-using the existing garage building as a new gymnasium allowed for most of the existing structure to be saved.
