Story

DAVIS redeveloped the common spaces at 1900 K Street, a striking glass-façade corner building in downtown D.C., through a $1.7M renovation that enhances both functionality and aesthetics. This project modernized the lobby and atrium, upgraded the reception area, and revitalized back-of-house support spaces. With a scope that included electrical, low-voltage, millwork, ornamental metals, drywall, and glasswork, our team delivered a space that makes an immediate impression. Immediately catching the eye of any passerby is a custom chandelier designed by Preciosa, a renowned lighting designer and vendor. The fixture consists of 250 suspended strands, each adorned with hand-blown glass globes in crackled and bubbled textures—totaling approximately 1,800 individual illuminated globes. This signature installation required an exceptional level of precision, due to the chandelier running over two different levels, both the English Basement and first floor. For each strand, the team had to ensure that each fixture point was laid out exactly as intended per the design in coordination with the ceiling design and construction. Additionally, we ran all power and low voltage to each of the light strands and ran pathway to a centralized room, while complex framing and drywall had to be coordinated around each fixture point. Project Challenges A major challenge was accessibility to the ceilings—from the first floor, the ceiling was 35’ to the underslab of the 3rd floor and from the English Basement, where most of the custom light fixture footprint was located. To reach the underside of the 3rd floor slab, we mobilized a crawler boom lift and manlift concurrently. The equipment couldn’t reach some sections of the light fixture’s layout, so our team engineered a custom scaffold over the grand stairway. At the two-story entrance and the reception ceiling, we built back-lit stretched-fabric ceilings. We also built a custom directory that wraps the corner of a wall and coordinated with the owner’s vendors for its displays. At the entrance and elevator back walls, we built framed openings with millwork and ornamental metal for artwork. Additionally, the new reception area includes HVAC, drywall and framing, millwork, countertops, stone, and coordination with the building’s security vendor. Another major challenge was working in an active Class A office building. With work occurring in front-of-house spaces, we worked meticulously with the property management team to accommodate tenants, including a major law firm on the first and second floors. To disguise active construction, we built temporary partitions where the property management team developed and displayed renderings of the renovation for prospective tenants. Pedestrian barricades were implemented to divert traffic in high-usage walkways. Additionally, we worked earlier hours through the week and on Saturdays to minimize tenant disruption. A key to this project’s success was constant communication and planning with the property management team to ensure there was minimal impact to the building’s tenants while still ensuring an on-time, high-quality result.