ThirdWall Construction completed the Somerset Community Pool and Bath House in Chevy Chase, MD. This challenging project was recently awarded the Excellence in Design Honor award from AIA Maryland Chapter as well as the Potomac Valley Chapter.

A peer review jury cited 17 projects across the state, and of these, Somerset Pool Bath House and one other project received Honor Awards.  McInturff Architects provided the design of the project.  Project owner is the Town of Somerset.

ThirdWall was selected to work with the team as the General Contractor based on experience in constructing numerous similar projects in the Washington DC Metropolitan area. The project involved a number of very sensitive site conditions, including an adjacent stream, forest protection, active walking path, limited access bridge and preservation of parts of the existing pool and deck.

AIA Jury Comments:

A small pool house, located in a public park, operated by the town of Somerset, Maryland is transformed from an uninviting, low roofed, dark bathhouse and community center into a light, airy, and pleasant public gathering place.

Wood trusses were added to a simple steel column and beam structure, opening a shuttered attic story to the bathhouse and changing area. Terrace space with moveable furniture was expanded to accommodate more people without altering the overall footprint of the existing pool or bathhouse.

New materials, carefully composed on the existing footprint, render the small pool house an elegant jewel in the center of the community park. The addition of the open attic story brings the proportions of the building in line with the dimensions of the pool and pool deck.

The approach from a drive and parking area significantly improved accessibility. Changing rooms are re-configured, with open air circulation made possible by the trussed and shuttered roof. The jury was impressed by the intelligent simplicity of the design decisions and the way in which the building re-forms the sense of community made possible by clearly articulated structure, surfaces, materials, and plan logic.