Metro Park VI: Delivering Style and Substance in Northern Virginia

It was pretty clear that L.F. Jennings Inc. (LFJ) was the best option for building Metro Park VI. The park is the latest installment at the Metro Park office campus in Springfield, Va., a sprawling 37-acre corporate playground boasting extensive Class A office space that delivers on sustainability as well. LFJ has focused primarily on retail and commercial office space construction since the company was founded in 1952. Aside from the company’s focus, it is LFJ’s commitment to delivering a high-quality product that keeps clients coming back again and again.

“I joined the company 12 years ago because of its reputation in the industry,” admits Adam Rose, project manager at LFJ. The company’s efforts have paid off over the years, and the Washington, D.C.-based contractor averages a repeat client and referral rate above 80 percent on average.

LFJ stays true to its roots as a masonry subcontractor by maintaining a successful masonry division to compliment its general contracting services. The extra skill set has helped LFJ build greater value for clients through the years by self-performing any related masonry work on a project, ensuring the masonry component stands up to LFJ’s high standards. The masonry division itself has been recognized for its superior craftsmanship on numerous occasions, taking home three Associated Builders & Contractor’s Award of Excellence in just 12 years.

High-caliber Craftsmanship

LFJ’s masonry experience came into play once again with the construction of Metro Park VI. The construction of the building was split into two halves with LFJ overseeing construction of the building’s core, shell and surrounding landscaping and hardscaping. The construction of the interior was thus left for the tenant to decide, giving the tenant greater control over floor plans, finishes and pricing.

The only finished interior work LFJ completed on metro Park VI was the construction of the building’s multistory, light-flooded lobby and restrooms. Visitors enter the grand lobby through two entrances, framed by glass canopies that lead to a luxurious lobby boasting polished marble flooring in addition to an interior paneled in marble, glass, stainless steel and sapele wood.

Internationally renowned design firm KlingStubbins provided the design for Metro Park VI, ensuring the building would deliver a LEED Platinum certification under the Core & Shell rating system. The 11-story building’s LEED certification was crucial as Metro Park VI is the centerpiece of the Metro Park campus. KlingStubbins’ design focuses on flooding the building’s interior with as much natural daylight as possible, using low-thermal emissive glass for energy efficiency, of course.

KlingStubbins’ design combines a series of ribbon windows with alternating panels of brick veneer along the shorter sides of the rectangular building. The combination creates a pattern that wraps around the corners of the building, giving the glass curtain wall façades on the remaining two sides of the building a tapering shape. The tapering glass façades not only accentuate the building’s slightly bowed exterior, but the effect also lends the building a sense of scale in harmony with the other buildings on the Metro Park campus.

Leaving a Legacy of Success

Metro Park VI is just one of seven projects LFJ has built on the Metro Park campus. The company previously lent its expertise to the construction of the nearby office buildings and parking garage. LFJ also oversaw the majority of the infrastructural work and hardscaping throughout the 37-acre campus.

“It was a fairly tight site to build on since we were surrounded on all sides by other buildings, which limited our staging areas,” expands Rose. LFJ coordinated closely with the various subcontracting teams involved to ensure the limited access wouldn’t affect the project’s progress. Logistical adjustments were relatively easy to make, according to Rose, as the project delivery method gave the team the ability to make sure the subcontractors involved were experienced and totally aligned with LFJ’s approach.

“The only time the site constraints became an issue at all, though, was toward the final phase when we began work on the surrounding landscaping and hardscaping components,” clarifies Rose. Luckily, the teams were able to see that any nonessential work was staged from inside the building or elsewhere on site, giving crews the space to reinforce LFJ’s masonry prowess. LFJ created a visual connection to the surrounding buildings by continuing the pattern created throughout the campus using a combination of pave stones, concrete and brickwork.

LFJ delivered the project in November 2011, just 16 months after breaking ground. The complex’s luxury amenities include a state-of-the-art fitness center for tenants, a full-service restaurant and deli, and free shuttle to the nearby public transit stations. The trophy-quality building reported 65-percent leasing, including two large defense contractors, as of spring 2012 when it opened for occupancy. The welcome reception underscores LFJ’s ability to deliver a product that successfully blends sustainability and style, cementing L.F. Jennings Inc.’s reputation as the contractor of choice for high-profile corporate construction.