LABC Awards Honor ‘Something Old and Something New’

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — On June 18, the renovated Los Angeles Hall of Justice project earned the Los Angeles Business Council’s City of L.A. Green Building Award, while the new U.S. Federal Courthouse project earned the Under Construction Award at the 45th Annual Los Angeles Architectural Awards ceremony.

The City of L.A. Green Building Award is given to a deserving project that has advanced sustainable development in the city. Clark Construction worked alongside design partner A.C. Martin on a design-build contract for structural, architectural and aesthetic upgrades to the 1920s-era Hall of Justice building. Los Angeles” former county courts and jail, the structure was closed after it was damaged in the 1994 Northridge earthquake. The County of Los Angeles chose to preserve this 400,00-square-foot landmark instead of tearing it down and building anew.

The Hall of Justice was designed and constructed to achieve LEED Gold certification, exceeding the job requirement of LEED Silver at no additional cost to the client. Sustainable elements of the project include :

• Rainwater collected onsite, including the sub-surface water pumped out of sump pumps under the parking garage, passes through an onsite biofiltration system before being discharged into the stormwater system.
• The project utilizes steam and chilled water from a central utility plant located across the street, which greatly improves the efficiency of the structure.
• Offices feature floor-to-ceiling windows exposing large amounts of the building to natural light.

Scheduled for completion in 2016, the new Los Angles U.S. Courthouse, which earned the Council’s Under Construction Award, is a 10-story, 600,000-square-foot structure. Referred to as the “floating cube” the new facility will feature 24 courtrooms and 32 justice chambers. A sky-lit central courtyard at the structure’s core will provide natural light and circulation to the building’s interior spaces. The facility will be anchored by two levels of below-grade parking, as well as mechanical and back-of-house spaces.