A demanding construction schedule and creative design solutions allowed the $50 million renovation and expansion of Tyser Tower at the University of Maryland’s Byrd Stadium to be completed a year early, in time for the fall 2009 football season. Photo Courtesy of Clark Construction Group, LLC Related Links: Mid-Atlantic Construction�s Best of 2009 Awards The scope of work called for a 66,000-sq-ft addition to the original 33,000-sq-ft football stadium pressbox and seating facility and the complete renovation of the existing space. The owner selected the construction manager, Clark Construction, early in the design process. Soon after joining the team, Clark

This two-story, 75,000-sq-ft build-out was designed to achieve a platinum rating under the new LEED-CI Version 3.0 system, which was not released until the end of construction. Photo Courtesy Eric Laignel Related Links: Mid-Atlantic Construction�s Best of 2009 Awards In order to be prepared for the new rating, James G. Davis Construction Corp. compiled the construction waste reports, documented all the indoor air-quality strategies with photographs throughout the project and verified that all material onsite complied with the new LEED standards and scorecard for the project. The general contractor was the first in the country to use the v3.0 templates

Being the first to accomplish a singular goal does more than simply get a project team’s name in the record books. It also sets a benchmark by which all subsequent endeavors are measured. Chris Cunningham Photography Chris Cunningham Photography Related Links: Mid-Atlantic Construction�s Best of 2009 Awards But teams that aspire to follow in the footsteps of the Walter L. Rice Education Center, Virginia’s first LEED platinum building and Mid-Atlantic Construction’s project of the year, had better be prepared to tackle some formidable challenges. The $2.8-million, 4,900-sq-ft building is the centerpiece of the Inger and Walter Rice Center for Environmental

Without any adjacent context, designers of this $40 million 1-million-sq-ft shopping center worked to create a neighborhood that looked as if it had developed over time. Related Links: Mid-Atlantic Construction�s Best of 2009 Awards Contractors used a mixture of building materials in complex and decorative ways to achieve a traditional architectural look and feel. The main facades were built with a mixture of masonry, clapboard and EIFS, all seamlessly integrated to give the appearance of older construction. The longer expanses of storefronts were broken up to create the image of many separate buildings built up over time. Key Players Owner:

KIPP DC’s $6.5 million Will Academy is a new, 15,000-sq-ft educational facility that will be jointly occupied by both Will Academy and Scott Montgomery public school. Related Links: Mid-Atlantic Construction�s Best of 2009 Awards The facility has been designed to LEED for schools silver specification. Construction includes a 7,000-sq-ft gymnasium, 3,000-sq-ft multipurpose room and 5,000 sq ft of classroom and administrative space. The project’s sustainability goals were aggressive. The addition’s heating and cooling system includes the use of a closed-loop geothermal system. Located in the courtyard adjacent to the building, the geothermal well field consists of 20 vertical wells at

The $44.9-million, 93,000-sq-ft, design-build New Beginnings Youth Development Center in Laurel, Md., provides room to house 60 youth in 10-bed housing units designed to encourage positive youth development in a therapeutic, safe and secure setting. Photo Courtesy of Dan Cunningham Related Links: Mid-Atlantic Construction�s Best of 2009 Awards Tompkins/Hardie Joint Venture, a partnership between Tompkins Builders and Hardie Industries, both of Washington, D.C., broke ground on the detention center in September 2007 and finished the five-building project for the District of Columbia Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services in March. AECOM Design of Arlington, Va., designed the 15-acre campus to provide

This project demanded the delivery of 50,000 sq ft of tenant space within 12 weeks, a job made more complex with the addition of a connector stair cut through a post-tensioned slab and accented by a glass rail. Related Links: Mid-Atlantic Construction�s Best of 2009 Awards The connector stair proved to be the project’s critical path, although other construction challenges threatened to delay the completion of the project. Turner brought in a team of experts to create an 18- by 20-ft opening in a post-tensioned slab. The tendons in the existing slab were identified with X-rays and ground-penetrating radar. Key

The $4.8-million, 15,000-sq-ft River Center houses the sailing and crew programs, as well as the new biology research lab for St. Mary’s College in St. Mary’s City, Md. Photo: Paul Burke Related Links: Mid-Atlantic Construction�s Best of 2009 Awards Because the River Center site is on a historic landmark campus, the project included an extensive excavation of historic artifacts that were cataloged and preserved throughout the construction process. The site is located along the St. Mary’s River on a riverbed that had been filled in with debris from the original building on the site, which burned in a fire. It’s

The $8.5-million Rutt Academic Center at Lancaster Mennonite School in Lancaster, Pa., features a complex and bold design of brick, split-face block and EIFS with glass ribbon wall that incorporates many large curtain-wall areas. Photo Courtesy Nathan Cox Related Links: Mid-Atlantic Construction�s Best of 2009 Awards Cornerstone Design of Lancaster, Pa., designed the structural-steel building. High Construction Co. of Lancaster joined the project team early on, with the project about $1.3 million over budget. The company offered suggestions to refine the scope and bring the job in within budget. The company broke ground on the 45,000-sq-ft addition in October 2007.

A last-minute decision to reach beyond the planned-for LEED gold certification meant all Lafayette Tower project team members had to pull together to achieve a platinum-worthy project. Photo Courtesy of Kimberly Wood/Clark Construction Group Related Links: Mid-Atlantic Construction�s Best of 2009 Awards Earning LEED platinum when the original intent was gold took a combination of thorough documentation and creative thinking. The owner was directly responsible for earning two credits late in the construction process, for purchasing the equivalent of 35% of the building’s power for two years from renewable energy sources to fulfill one requirement and for instituting a green