PROJECT  The Study at Johns Hopkins

LOCATION Baltimore, Maryland, US​

ARCHITECT DIGSAU

CLIENT Hospitality3

ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN TEAM DIGSAU

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT Jonathan Ceci Landscape Architects
CONTRACTOR Wohlsen Construction Company

ENGINEERS
Formerly 1200 AE, Currently Matteo Ferran
STV Inc
Henry Adams
Henry Adams

PHOTOGRAPHER Halkin Mason Photography

CONSULTANTS (if applicable)
FDS Design Studio
The Lighting Practice
Jensen Hughes
TBS Services
Lerch Bates
Wilson Engineering
15 Moreland Design Studio

PROJECT COMPLETION DATE  1/31/2024

PROJECT SUMMARY
The Study at Johns Hopkins University is a striking adaptive re-use project that converts a 12-story 1920s apartment building into a 115-room boutique lifestyle hotel and social hub at a busy juncture between Baltimore’s Charles Village and the sprawling Homewood campus. This technically challenging project transformed an opaque, heavy concrete structure into a light-filled, open, and accessible building that fully engages the streetscape and campus threshold, providing an inviting new forum for the local community and international visitors. The building is now porous, connected to the sidewalk at multiple levels, surrounded by native plantings and pervious landscape, with vastly improved insulation, windows and systems throughout.

Strategic demolition of floors and walls on the lower three levels creates a dynamic interior landscape that connects physically and visually to urban life. The public realm moves seamlessly into the building’s lower three levels, expanding the notion of public space as hotel guests and passers-by are drawn into the restaurant, terraces, and public ‘living room’ spaces.

The underlying, irregular cast-in-place hybrid structure’s low ceiling heights and small openings created challenges for improving daylight, building performance, and space conditioning. The resolution included preservation of head height through creative adaptation of a series of vertical shafts for distribution of new, energy efficient mechanical systems to each room—no two of which were the same.

In the public realm, the key design move was to remove large portions of the lower-level concrete floor slabs to create an impressive double height ‘living room’ with an adjoining outdoor terrace, and a new double height restaurant with outdoor seating and a separate entry. The lower three levels of façade were removed down the concrete frame, and rebuilt with large glazed openings to invite interaction between the hotel and the surrounding campus that it serves. Where possible, existing brick was salvaged to be reused for infill. Inside, local artists and fabricators contributed signature elements such as the exquisite door pulls, monumental stair, mural, and hand-blown glass fixtures.

On the guest floors, the façade was meticulously preserved. All windows were replaced with operable, high-performance windows and thermal insulation was added behind all solid walls. Along with new roof insulation, these comprehensive improvements to the building façade result in a tight, efficient envelope that minimizes the requirements for the new mechanical and ventilation systems. Rooms are stocked with books authored by Johns Hopkins faculty and include locally-produced art. The diverse, unique layout of rooms affords a wide range of price points, increasing access to the experience.

Finally, the site was transformed from a previous ground plane consisting primarily of lawn and concrete walkways into one comprised of gardens and terraces. Now fully accessible, the occupiable areas include a combination of stone and brick pavers and site walls. The gardens include primarily native plantings that contribute both to the urban tree canopy and to the ecological restoration of the neighborhood.

JURY COMMENTS (if applicable)

IMAGES – CAPTIONS & CREDITS

Image 1  Halkin Mason Photography 2024 ©
Image 2  Halkin Mason Photography 2024 ©
Image 3  Halkin Mason Photography 2024 ©
Image 4  Halkin Mason Photography 2024 ©
Image 5  Halkin Mason Photography 2024 ©
Image 6  Halkin Mason Photography 2024 ©
Image 7  Halkin Mason Photography 2024 ©
Image 8  Halkin Mason Photography 2024 ©

MEDIA FOR DOWNLOAD
Project PDF