Armed with an expansive color palette at a competitive price point, Citadel Architectural Products was selected to supply the wall panels for a high-end apartment complex outside our nation’s capital.
The Modera at Mosaic, owned by Mill Creek Residential Trust, is a six-story building: five stories of high-end apartment rentals on top of a ground floor of retail outlets. Modera boasts 251 residential units for singles and young families working within the Washington Metro region. The apartments are located near a metro station, Dunn Loring, Va., within the thriving Mosaic District.
Dennis Connors, SK&I Architecture, Bethesda, Md., says the project is a mixed-use six-story Type IIIA construction. The top five stories are high-end apartment rentals atop a bottom story of retail shops. The entire project is approximately 260,000 square feet of residential space and 50,000 square feet of retail space.
The market is for roommates, singles and young families all working within the Washington Metro region but a desire to not only live near a metro station (Dunn Loring, Va.) but within the thriving Mosaic District which has access to shops, restaurants, theatres, etc. According to the website, Mosaic “elevates the community experience to a new standard by creating a vibrant, sophisticated environment that connects families and friends together. The unique district is created through a hand-selected mix of retailers and restaurants, intelligent urban design and passion for enabling authentic community engagement.”
The client chose Citadel Architectural Products for competitive cost reasons, but also because the Panel 20 system provided a panel which they felt would survive construction better than hollow core composite panels, and the fact that the Panel 20 batten system would allow easier repairs after completion of construction and further into the future. Better construction sequencing with the Panel 20 was a clients’ reason from the subcontractors. The variety of standard colors and standard faux wood choices was also a critical choice for material selection in that Millcreek’s partner on the project (Edens Avant) has a high standard for aesthetic design and the materials had to be compatible with the overall vision of the Mosaic District itself. Reserve White, Sky Blue, Narrow Cherry, and Slate Gray were all used on the project to give a modern aesthetic.
Mosaic is pioneering “intelligent” urban design and enhancing the way people interact and create community. Mosaic piloted the country’s LEED Neighborhood Development Program and ultimately achieved LEED Silver certification.
Chesapeake Siding Contractors Inc. of Elkridge, Md., installed the panels from Citadel Architectural Products. Production Manager Simon Kim estimated his crew was onsite for about a year. “Everything went well with that project,” Kim says. “We work with products from Citadel once in a while, it all depends on what the architect wants. For this project, the Citadel panels look great.
“We like working with metal, especially at higher levels because it’s lighter and safer to work with than other heavier siding products.”
Kim says construction forced the use of the roads alongside the building and required traffic to be diverted for brief periods of time.