260 N. Josephine
Denver
BEST PROJECT

Owner:Elevation Development Group
Lead Design Firm:Open Studio Architecture
General Contractor:GE Johnson Construction Co.
Civil Engineer:Martin/Martin Inc.
Structural Engineer:KL&A
MEP Engineer:ME Engineers Inc.

This 70,000-sq-ft building was constructed in the active and dense Cherry Creek North neighborhood in Denver. Challenged with building on a tight site with no laydown space and an existing hotel just 4 inches away, the design and project team selected a structural system that accelerated the schedule by a month and helped minimize disruptions to neighborhood traffic.

The two-way, flat post-tensioned concrete slab and concrete columns support the sloping wedge building design while eliminating more than 5 ft of height from the facade, thus increasing the building’s efficiency and saving thousands of square feet in materials. The approach also maximized buildable area.

Additional floor-to-floor savings came from the HVAC system, which uses refrigerant and non-conditioned air to move heating and cooling, significantly reducing the size of make-up air ductwork. That, in turn, contributed to a reduced plenum and greater ceiling heights, which maximized views on all floors.

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