NEW HAVEN, Conn.—Architecture studio Pickard Chilton has started construction on its design for Avocet Tower, a 530,000-square-foot, 250-foot-tall mixed-use development for Stonebridge comprising a hotel and office tower at 7373 Wisconsin Avenue in the central business district of Bethesda, Maryland.
Avocet Tower will include 370,000-square-feet of Class-A office space and a 220-key AC Hotel. The project, with delivery expected in summer 2021, is a P3 (public–private partnership) development between Stonebridge and Montgomery County, Md. The transit-oriented development is located directly across from the Bethesda Metro station, and will also accommodate above- and below-grade parking. Virginia-based Cooper Carry is the project’s architect of record.
“Avocet Tower is one of downtown Bethesda’s most anticipated developments, and its unique mix of hotel and office space will surely distinguish it from other new urban developments,” said Jon Pickard FAIA, RIBA, principal at Pickard Chilton. “There is significant demand for Class-A office space as more firms relocate from D.C., and Avocet Tower’s timeless, elegant design and quality amenities will be attractive to firms looking to settle in the revitalized Bethesda business district.”
Anticipating LEED-Platinum certification, Avocet Tower’s sustainability features include advanced mechanical systems, secured bicycle storage, electric vehicle charging stations, bio-retention basins on the roof terrace, and dynamic glazing throughout the entire office area.
Avocet Tower’s side-core design allows for efficient floor plates of 22,000 to 28,000 square feet. The building’s façade includes View Dynamic Glass, which controls natural light within the office tower. Glass canopies mark the hotel’s and office building’s front entrances, and a mix of public and private amenities and open space encourages a continuous flow from Wisconsin Avenue through the 10,000-square-foot landscaped public plaza and shared lobby.
The building is topped by a 7,500-square-foot sky terrace and crowned by a trellis. Additional amenities include a fitness center and a conference center on the 18th floor. The tower will also have work and gathering spaces, as well as a restaurant to provide social areas for users, area residents, employees, and visitors within the urban core.
