New Federal Office Building in San Juan
Marvel's concept for GSA’s New Federal Building in San Juan takes lessons and ideas from Puerto Rico's architectural history, along with contemporary demands for a highly sophisticated office building. Showcasing external strength and readiness to defend the state, the interior spaces are made for human interaction and living, for allowing team building, and for buffering human life from the harsh conditions outside.
The lobby is the heart of the building, a gathering space
that all employees must enter in order to access the
elevator bank. It is vertically aligned with the West
lightwell, but separated by translucent floor apertures
that allow filtered daylight to permeate the space from
above.
The East lightwell connects the third and fourth levels
squad work areas with a dramatic stair, creating
an environment that encourages collaboration and
enhances the “art of workplace” that supports the
mission of the intended user.
The landscape design used the concept of a ‘moat’ to provide security to the building and create green infrastructure to manage the abundant rain.
The South elevation is articulated by selective fenestration by way of slim “light boxes” that recall the controlled fenestration of El Morro or its famous “garitas” or sentry boxes.
The reason for this is to protect from the Southern solar exposure and also to contain and protect the building’s infrastructure core.
- Location
- Hato Rey, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Client
- GSA
- Typology
- Civic, Public, Institutional
- Size
- 5.9 Acres
- Design Team
- Jonathan Marvel, Raquel Marrero, José Terrasa-Soler, José Marchand-Sifre, Tim Fryatt
- Consultants
- Heery (Structual/Interiors/Space Planning/Life Safety), Aireko (CM), CMA Architects & Engineers LLP (MEP), EBP Design Group (Civil/Survey/Environmental), Pieri Architects (Sustainability), Williamson & Associates (Envelope), Bakers Risk (Blast Consultant), Newcomb and Boyd (Security), Tillet Lighting Design (lighitng)
- Awards
- AIA Award of Honor
- Rendering Credits
- Lifang
