The Shenandoah Valley Discovery Museum, Virginia Building Renewal, USA Architecture Images
The Shenandoah Valley Discovery Museum in Winchester
American Architectural Redevelopment in Virginia design by Reader & Swartz Architects
Feb 15, 2017
Design: Reader & Swartz Architects
Location: 19 W. Cork Street, Winchester, Virginia 22601, USA
The Shenandoah Valley Discovery Museum
Photos by Nathan Webb, Peter Aaslestad, Shaun Galang
The Shenandoah Valley Discovery Museum, Virginia
This was a plain, utilitarian, three story brick building. It was originally constructed for the Schewels Furniture Company, in the historic downtown, in the late 1940’s. It was used as a furniture store for about 60 years, and then, more recently, as a church and professional offices. The goal of this adaptive reuse project was to transform the building into a children’s museum for a local non-profit group with limited funds.
The design involved gutting the building, in order to create open, flexible spaces for hands-on exhibits. An existing fire stair and an elevator at the rear of the building were retained, modified, and extended up to the new roof level; an additional fire stair was also inserted. The front façade was reworked, and a new glass garage door acts as both a storefront and an exhibit loading dock.
The most significant design intervention was the installation of the roof terrace / sky level space. This area is animated with new roof pavilions, which house the elevator, fire stairs, a stage / shade pavilion, a small lobby, and an office. Sculptural sun shades stretch across the roofscape. The roof terrace level provides views of the historic downtown and the Blue Ridge Mountains beyond. This level is used for gardening exhibits and educational programs, as well as for hosting large social events.
The building systems were treated in a matter-of-fact way: existing steel trusses were exposed, wood floor decking was uncovered, and new, colorful duct socks were installed. A community art project, consisting of painted plywood panels, enlivens the two long, linear sides of the building. The roof level guardrail is an animated grid of different perforated steel patterns.
The Shenandoah Valley Discovery Museum – Building Information
Project: The Shenandoah Valley Discovery Museum
Architect: Reader & Swartz Architects, P.C.
Project Team: Beth Reader, FAIA; Chuck Swartz, AIA, LEED AP; Laura Ours, AIA; Kevin Walker, AIA; Nathan Webb, AIA, LEED AP; Joel Richardson, Associate AIA, LEED AP
Contractor: Howard Shockey & Sons Inc. 1057 Martinsburg Pike Winchester, VA 22601 (540) 955-0711 [email protected]
Consultant: Structural Engineer: Painter- Lewis, P.L.C.
Photographer(s): Nathan Webb, AIA, LEED AP
Peter Aaslestad
Shaun Galang – Aerial Photography Winchester
Address: 19 W. Cork Street, Winchester, Virginia 22601, USA
Phone: +1(540) 772.2020
The Shenandoah Valley Discovery Museum in Winchester images / information received 150217s
Reader & Swartz Architects on e-architect
Location: 19 W. Cork Street, Winchester, Virginia 22601, United States of America
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