Ritz Carlton Georgetown Hotel and Residences

Washington, D.C., USA
Photo © Maxwell MacKenzie
Photo © Maxwell MacKenzie
Photo © Maxwell MacKenzie
Photo © Maxwell MacKenzie
Photo © Maxwell MacKenzie
Photo © Maxwell MacKenzie
Architects
Handel Architects
Location
3100 South Street NW, 20007 Washington, D.C., USA
Year
2003
Clients

Millennium Partners
EastBanc

Awards
Top 6 Hotels in Washington, DC, World's Best Hotel Awards | Travel+Leisure Magazine
American Architecture Award | The Chicago Athenaeum
Citation for Design | Boston Society of Architects
Citation for Design | AIA New York
Award for Merit | AIA New York State
Citation for Design | AIA New York State
Finalist | Gold Key Award for Best Hotel Interior Design
Project of the Year | National Commercial Builders Council
Award for Excellence | AIA Washington, DC
Craftsmanship Award | Washington Building Congress

The Ritz-Carlton, Georgetown integrates a 1932 landmark incinerator building into a high-end mixed-use complex on a steeply sloping site in Washington D.C.’s highly-regulated Georgetown neighborhood. The mixed-use program consists of an 86-key Ritz-Carlton Hotel, 28 residential apartments, a 14-screen theater, below-grade parking for 350 cars, and 8,000 sq. ft. (745 m²) of retail space. A 40-foot height limitation and Floor-Area Ratio of only 2.5 eliminated the possibility of stacking program elements on top of the site. To solve this, approximately 50% of the program was placed underground. Residential units take full advantage of Potomac River views and are situated on top of the plinth along K Street. The theaters and parking facility are concealed within the plinth, while hotel buildings are located off quiet South Street.

The incinerator was transformed into the hotel’s public spaces: the lobby, bar, restaurant, and meeting spaces. The smokestack itself became a private dining room 16 feet (4.9 m) in diameter. In keeping with Georgetown’s historic character, the buildings were crafted in brick, stone, and metal to make a contemporary statement of massing while reinterpreting the vernacular of the historic city. The interiors expose the essential structural components and contrast them with simple but richly textured furnishings and finishes.

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