Justice Is Being Served With Building of New Ralph L. Carr Colorado Judicial Center
The $258-million Ralph L. Carr Colorado Judicial Center will be right at home when its 2013 completion fulfills Denver's civic center master plan. The new judicial center, which houses the state courts complex, sits across the street from the iconic Colorado State Capitol and is a neighbor to such design giants as the City and County Building, Denver Public Library and the Denver Art Museum.
The granite-clad building features a columned facade and glass-domed atrium that complement the nearby executive and legislative buildings. The 695,767-sq-ft complex includes a 12-story office building that will consolidate seven judicial and legal agencies, improve efficiency and save money on leased space.
The four-story neoclassical courthouse also will host the Colorado Supreme Court Law Library and an interactive Visitors Learning Center for the American justice system under a 4,000-sq-ft green roof.
Demolition of the former building on the site started in May 2010. Foundation work began that August, and the project is moving toward an on-time completion in spring 2013. It is aiming for LEED-Gold certification.
Virtual Efficiency
Denver's Fentress Architects and CM/GC Mortenson Construction, Denver, were hired within two weeks of each other in July 2009. Although the firms are working under separate contracts, Mortenson project executive Brett Sisco says they operate like an integrated design-build team, with a "spirit of cooperation second to none."
Brian Kannady, principal with M-E Engineers, Denver, the mechanical engineering firm that played a key role in the greening of the building, adds, "Integrated design brought together the owner, building operator, design team, construction team and the commissioning team early so timely and educated decisions could be made."
The entire structure is being coordinated and detailed using sophisticated 3D modeling from the "cloud." Every subcontractor is included—down to the roofing, flashing and caulking details—and a full structure and enclosure model drives fabrication and quality control, Sisco says. "Subs have met or beat deadlines because the process went smoothly," he adds.
Curt Fentress, design principal at Fentress Architects, says the project illustrates "the future of design and construction. The model is accessible on each floor to workers via their iPads and handheld devices, where they can see real-time drawings that may have been altered due to manufacturer or supply issues or a last-minute building-code issue."
Fentress says the design team considered 75 to 80 different concepts in the early stages of design while searching for the best solution to create a 100-year building. Granite was chosen for the exterior of the concrete-framed courts building to create a civic/judicial feel and to reflect the nearby Capitol. The granite was quarried in Minnesota and trucked to Denver from its fabrication point in South Dakota.
The open, four-story atrium will offer a dramatic view of the Capitol while also providing passersby with a sense of transparency. Each courtroom opens up to the atrium and onto a pedestrian walkway.
The 490,000-sq-ft, precast structural-steel office building will house the headquarters and new offices for the state's attorney general, court administrator and public defender as well as other court-related offices. Shared support space for the different judicial agencies is included.
An 11,500-sq-ft conference center features a tiered classroom for press conferences and training, while a larger conference room is designed to be divided into three smaller spaces. A shared copy center and small café are also located in the building.
Energy Savings
Kannady says the mechanical team sought cost-effective and proven technology that makes the most sense for users. The data center in the office tower will demand energy year-round, including holidays; however, the energy-efficient strategies should save 30% compared with a standard code-compliant building.
Air-handling units are equipped with evaporative cooling to take advantage of Colorado's warm, dry summers, reducing the need for air conditioning. The mechanical plant has four water-cooled chillers with magnetic-bearing technology that eliminates oil lubrication and will save on maintenance and operation costs, Kannady says.
Area sensors interface with the building automation system (BAS) so it knows not to light, heat or cool unoccupied spaces. The lighting system not only controls fixtures based on time of day and occupancy but also dims interiors when daylighting is sufficient. The BAS also dynamically varies the amount of ventilation based upon building occupancy. The use of high-efficiency plumbing fixtures is projected to save 910,000 gallons of potable water every year. And the open-protocol BAS allows for future flexibility and expansion.
Mortenson has made a concerted effort to reduce waste and is recycling more than 75% of construction debris, including cardboard, wood, steel and concrete from demolition. More than 10,000 sq ft of granite was selectively gathered from the former Supreme Court building on the site before its demolition and then re-used on plaza areas.
Sisco says Mortenson is also attempting to become "as close to paperless as possible" by using electronic documents throughout the project. All submittals and RFI processing is managed and posted electronically, reducing paper usage by at least 25% for a project of this size.
