New Town is the densification of NASA’s oldest research center in Hampton, Virginia. NASA looked to the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Region 3 to help them plan for six buildings, through GSA’s Design Excellence Program, so they could consolidate inward from buildings that are well over 50 years old.

Cooper Carry was among the team awarded the Design-Excellence Design-Build contract for the first of six buildings. This 75,000 gross square foot, three story, all glass and metal panel building is the new home for the Center’s Director, her team, and five other departments. The building is designed to meet blast mitigation and progressive collapse requirements. The interior supports five state-of-the-art conferencing rooms that will provide real time connection between NASA’s other strategic Centers.

In adhering to NASA’s directive to be sustainable along with a required service life of 40 years, our team proposed a better than LEED Gold rating, ultimately achieving Platinum, through innovative solutions that include under-floor air distribution (UFAD) in addition to the bridging design having geo-thermal, photovoltaic (PV) elements and vegetative (Green) roof. The photovoltaic onsite power generation is achieved through two systems; 1) fixed solar panels placed on the penthouse roof, and 2) a photovoltaic film sandwiched between the glazing layers within the building’s massive atrium skylight.
Awards
• Best Green Building, Engineering News-Record Southeast, 2011 Best Projects
• Innovation Award, Sustainability Category, GSA Real Property, 2011
• LEED-NC Platinum, USGBC, 2011
• Featured in B&C Southeast and Northeast Magazines due to its high performance initiatives
• NASA Blue Marble Award for Excellence in Energy and Water Management
• U.S. Department of Energy, Federal Energy and Water Management Award, 2012