The Tishman Building is getting “new” windows. They’ll look a lot like the old ones thanks to the RENOVATE by Berkowitz window retrofit system being used to update the 20-story building overlooking Lafayette Square. The window retrofit is part of a $41-million renovation that is transforming the office building into a mixed-use complex.
The 55-year-old building was named to the National Register for Historic Places in 2012. According to project architect Jonathan Morris of Carmina Wood Morris, the historic designation posed a significant hurdle.
“We wanted to replace the original glazing with a new, insulated curtain wall that was fabricated to match the profile of the original,” Morris said. “However, because the building was an historic restoration, we were required to maintain the existing façade and original glass. At the same time, we wanted to update the building and improve its energy and thermal efficiency, while reducing street noise from the light rail line out front. The Renovate system was exactly what we were looking for to meet all of these requirements and goals, and earn tax credits.”
Each of the building’s 760 single-pane windows is being retrofitted with the Renovate Platinum Plus II system, adding two lites of high-performance, low-e glass to the interior surface of the existing windows, creating triple-pane insulating glass units.
Once complete, the 140,000-square-foot building will feature a 124-room Hilton Garden Inn hotel, 18 market-rate apartments, a restaurant, and corporate offices for The Hamister Group, which owns the building.
The construction schedule calls for The Hamister Group’s offices on the top floors to be completed by June 1. The apartments are expected to be substantially complete by then as well. Interior finishes throughout the hotel floors will continue over the summer with the Garden Inn opening this fall.
“There’s a lot going on over there,” says Morris.
Photos by Nate Mroz