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Chevy Chase Bank recently moved into its new 750,000-gross-square-foot corporate headquarters with an adjacent 400-seat performing arts complex for the Round House Theatre in the heart of Bethesda. In order to accommodate both employees and customers, the project also features 750,000 gross square feet of parking for approximately 2,000 cars.
Brennan Beer Gorman Monk Architects of Washington, D.C. designed the 15-story, twin structural steel towers with crenelated tops, which required two tower cranes for the 6,900 ton steel erection. The tight urban site surrounded by office buildings and a residential neighborhood is located in a busy commercial area and on a major commuter route, which posed construction logistics challenges for the Clark team.
The limestone, precast and glass towers welcome visitors and employees through a stainless steel and glass curtainwall entrance, with a Chevy Chase Bank branch office and additional retail space on the first floor. Wood panels, limestone, marble and white onyx accentuate the elegant lobby, which is highlighted by a backlit white onyx oculus and rotunda in the main entrances. An intricate marble floor motif is carried through the main level and the elaborate millwork designs in the lobby also are replicated in the elevators.
The building also features a cafeteria on the fourth floor for tenants. A shared four-story connector links the two towers together. The structure is wrapped in limestone from the ground to the fourth floor, followed by precast concrete to the penthouse level.
Round House Theatre
Under an agreement with Montgomery County, Chevy Chase Bank built the new performing arts theater and granted its use to Montgomery County’s Department of Recreation, which, in turn, leased the facility to the Round House Theatre. A three-story building (with one below grade), the theater is located next to the headquarters facility. Seating occupies the street level and a second floor balcony, with ancillary production space on the second floor, and green room and parking for patrons on the first basement level.
“We are ecstatic to have been selected to occupy this great new space!“ said Jerry Whiddon, Producing Artistic Director of the Round House. “It is extremely gratifying that the County Executive, the County Council, the community, and Chevy Chase Bank have all committed to our continued growth.”
The development team worked with the Montgomery County Park and Planning staff and local communities for the past several years to bring this project to fruition and to create an attractive and safe streetscape for passersby.
A beautifully landscaped plaza includes a large granite fountain, trees and planters surrounded by brick pavers. Visitors and employees enjoy this large green space found at the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and East West Highway.
Members of the project design team also included Leo A. Daly of Washington, D.C., interior architect; Tadjer Cohen Edelson of Silver Spring, Md., structural engineer; Joseph R. Loring & Associates of Washington, D.C., mechanical/electrical engineer; VIKA, Inc. of McLean, Va., civil engineer; Michael Bartlett of Bethesda, Md., landscape designer; Wells and Associates, traffic engineer; and La Pierre & Company of Alexandria, Va., landscape architect.
Clark Construction Group, LLC is based in Bethesda, Md.
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