dumontjanks

Our successful master plan for Georgetown University has led to multiple projects unifying the stunning hilltop campus while introducing a simple and elegant site materials palette. The historic Healy Lawn is the iconic introduction to campus. Our study of the evolution of the Healy Lawn explored how it has served the campus in many ways from athletic field to parking lot to walled green. Remnants of all these periods and uses exist in the lawn today. The goal of this effort was to create a simple elegant idea that removes or relocates random poor-quality trees and donated markers and artifacts in the landscape, and complements the stone gothic era of the surrounding buildings with elegant lines of new trees, and exceeds DC-regulatory stormwater aspirations for water quality and post storm runoff.

As part of the master planning effort, we also worked with the university’s School of Medicine and their clinical partner MedStar to envision a new North District accommodating a proposed surgical pavilion with 30 OR’s, post-surgical units, and 200 post-operative beds and 600 underground spaces. The current landscape of the North District, approximately 10 acres, is a chaotic, collection of surface visitor and staff parking lots, and multiple building drop-offs occupying the space between clinical, university residence halls, and supporting restaurants and cafes. Below this landscape are multiple layers of existing and outdated utilities, all of which need to be re-routed to accommodate a new underground parking garage, with the proposed new landscape being built on the garage’s roof. DumontJanks led all urban design, original building program massing, and the final landscape architectural design services in conjunction with MedStar’s design team.

The plan creates a new landscape composition of quadrangles, simple lawns, pea-stone seating and dining courts, and vehicular arrival courts. Given the intense heat and humidity of the DC region, all new spaces are defined and sheltered by strong bosques of trees. The North District is now in construction.

The first implemented project after the completion of the master plan was the Arrupe Residential Hall, which transformed a small remnant triangle of campus land, addinghadding 225 residential beds, and a transparent ground floor that wedded common work space, café, and fireplace lounge with an adjacent series of exterior paved courts, amphitheater, and walks. In addition to the highly-used courtyards, the landscape provides major stormwater infiltration and storage beneath all courts and strong groves of oak and birch to provide shade. The site plan creates a crossroads space that connects the campus.