Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building | |
 The Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building in August 2006 | |
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| Location | 950Pennsylvania Avenue, andConstitution Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. |
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| Coordinates | 38°53′35.52″N77°1′30″W / 38.8932000°N 77.02500°W /38.8932000; -77.02500 |
| Built | 1935 |
| Architect | Milton Bennett Medary; Charles L. Borie Jr.;Clarence C. Zantzinger. |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival |
| Part of | Pennsylvania Avenue National Historic Site (ID66000865[1]) |
TheRobert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building, sometimes calledMain Justice,[2] is theheadquarters of theUnited States Department of Justice. It houses Department of Justice offices, including the office of theUnited States attorney general. The building was completed in 1935. In 2001, it was renamed afterRobert F. Kennedy, the 64th U.S. attorney general.
The building is located inWashington, D.C. at 950Pennsylvania Avenue NW, on atrapezoidal lot on theblock bounded by Pennsylvania Avenue to the north,Constitution Avenue to the south, 9th Street to the east, and 10th Street NW to the west, in theFederal Triangle.[3] It is located west of theNational Archives Building, east of theInternal Revenue Service Building, north of theNational Mall, and south of theJ. Edgar Hoover Building. The building is owned by theGeneral Services Administration.[4] It comprises sevenfloors[5] and 1.2 million sq ft (110,000 m2).[3][4][6]
The Office of the Attorney General was created by the1st United States Congress by theJudiciary Act of 1789.[3] In 1792, theCongress made the Attorney General aCabinet-level post.[3]
In 1870, PresidentUlysses S. Grant signed the bill creating theUnited States Department of Justice.[3] There was not yet a permanent home for either the Attorney General or the Justice Department, and each had occupied a succession of temporary spaces infederal government buildings and privately ownedoffice buildings.[3] While plans to provide the department with its own building were developed as early as 1910, it was not until the late 1920s that significant progress was made toward this goal.[3]
In 1908 and in 1928, Congress authorized the purchase of land in what is now known as theFederal Triangle for departmental offices.[3] The authorization was part of a wave of government construction; the 1926 Public Buildings Act permitted the government to hire private architects for thedesign of federal buildings, which led to large-scale construction of public buildings, including the development of the 70 acre Federal Triangle site between theCapitol and theWhite House.[3]Treasury SecretaryAndrew W. Mellon and the Board of Architectural Consultants, composed of leading architects and headed byEdward H. Bennett of theChicagoarchitectural firm of Bennett,Parsons & Frost, developed design guidelines for the site.[3] Under Bennett's direction, each member of the board designed one of the buildings in the Federal Triangle complex to "provide each government agency or bureau with a building that would address its functional needs, while combining the individual buildings into a harmonious, monumental overall design expressive of the dignity and authority of the federal government."[3]
Milton Bennett Medary of thePhiladelphia firmZantzinger, Borie & Medary was selected as the architect for the Department of Justice Building; upon Medary's death in 1929, the project was taken over by his two partners Charles L. Borie Jr. andClarence C. Zantzinger.[3]
In 1930, Congressappropriated $10 million for the construction of a permanent Department of Justice headquarters in the Federal Triangle.[3] The building was constructed from 1931 to 1934.[3] Upon completion in 1935, the building finally provided a headquarters for the Attorney General and Department of Justice.[3] One percent of the cost of its construction was for art; between 1935 and 1941, 68murals were painted in the building (an example ofNew Deal art).[3]
In 1966, the Department of Justice building was listed on theNational Register of Historic Places as part of thePennsylvania Avenue National Historic Site.[3]
In 1974, theFederal Bureau of Investigation, which had been headquartered in the same building as the Justice Department, moved into its own headquarters at theJ. Edgar Hoover Building across the street on Pennsylvania Avenue.[7] In 1978, theUnited States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) was established after the passage of theForeign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The court of 11 judges appointed by theChief Justice of the United States (increased from seven by theUSA PATRIOT Act) meets in secret.
From March 1998 to January 2006,[4] majorrenovations to the building took place, including work onplumbing,electrical wiring,heating and cooling, andelevators. The project included replication of original lighting for the building's corridors and other ornamental spaces.[3] A new $3.1 millionconference center and "data room" were built, the main library and executive suites were restored, and a newmechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) system was installed.[4] The project's submitting firm andconstruction manager was the Gilbane Building Company, the architectural firm wasBurt Hill Kosar Rittelmann Associates, thestructural engineering firm was Delon Hampton Associates, and themechanical/electrical engineer was H.F. Lenz Company.[4]
Several difficulties were present: The building had to remain operational during renovations, andhazardous materials were involved, with a large-scaleasbestos abatement effort,lead paint removal, and the handling ofmercury-vapor lamps withPCBs. The Gilbane Building Company established a "stop-work" rule to halt construction when hazardous material was discovered.[4] An additional complication was security concerns, because ofsensitive andclassified information in the building. According toBuilding Design & Construction, construction personnel were "classified into three tiers and were permitted access to specific building areas based on these three levels ofsecurity clearance."[4] The extensive murals,sculptures, andplasterreliefs in the building were protected with shields during the construction, andtemperature,humidity, anddust controls were installed.[4]
The cost of the renovations was $142 million, but the project came in $4.2 million under budget, in part due to significantconservation efforts.[4] Design consultants decided to renovatecourtyardplaza andgarage structures instead ofdemolishing them, using 95 percent of existing materials.[4]Cobblestone blocks in the courtyard were "removed, cleaned, refurbished, and reinstalled", with "the foundation of the courtyard's originalfountain" being preserved and itspipes andpumps replaced.[4] Further, only theconcrete of "questionable integrity around the facility's garage beams" was repaired, instead of having all the concrete replaced.[4] For the plaza deck, the integrity of the concrete structure was tested. Some sections were found to be repairable, preventing them from being rebuilt and diverting 14,520 tons of waste fromlandfill.[4] Finally, the original foundation and structure building was preserved, which saved 110 tons of waste material and decreased "the risk of penetrating a sensitivewaterproofing membrane system."[4] Additional costs were saved through "early buyout": "taking advantage of the purchasing power of the entire four-phase construction job", the construction management firm "was able to secure prices early on in the project that otherwise would have been spent covering the escalating costs ofbuilding materials."[4] These measures allowed the GSA to carry out additional work: "restoration andrepointing of the limestone exterior", repair and replacement of the roof, restoration of "ornate painting and plaster", further hazardous materials abatement, andfire code upgrades.[4] Ultimately close to $1 million was returned to the GSA.
In 2001, theDepartment of Justice Main Building was renamed theRobert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building in honor ofRobert F. Kennedy, who was Attorney General (1961–1964) under his brother, PresidentJohn F. Kennedy, and his successor, PresidentLyndon Johnson. Kennedy was later aUS senator fromNew York andpresidential candidate until hisassassination in 1968.[3] PresidentGeorge W. Bush directed theGeneral Services Administrator to designate the building as the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building in apresidential memorandum,[8][9] and gave the rededication address on November 20, 2001, Senator Kennedy's birthday.[10][11] Attorney GeneralJohn Ashcroft also rededicated it in a speech at the Justice Department.
The building retains its original facades,lobbies,corridors,library, Great Hall, executive suites, and private offices, including the extensive use of ornamentalaluminum.[3]
The design by Zantzinger, Borie, and Medary blends influences fromneoclassical (Greek Revival) andArt Decoarchitectural styles.[3] The design is similar to other Federal Triangle buildings, with anIndiana limestonefacade over asteelframe, red-tilehip roof, andcolonnades, as well as interiorcourtyards to providenatural light andventilation.[3]The inscription on one of the sides of the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building is, "Justice is founded in the rights bestowed by nature upon man. Liberty is maintained in security of justice."
It is distinguished from other Federal Triangle buildings by Art Deco elements and the innovative use ofaluminum for details that were traditionallycast inbronze.[3] TheGeneral Bronze Corporation, known forNew York City'sMies van der Rohe-designedSeagram Building,[12][13] theAtlas[14] andPrometheus[14]bronze sculptures inRockefeller Center, the bronze doors for theUnited States Supreme Court andCommerce buildings,[15] the aluminum windows for theUnited Nations Secretariat,[16][17][18]Chase Manhattan Bank,[19][20] and theTripler Army Base Hospital[21] was chosen for supplying the aluminum and bronze for the building's design. All entrances to the building feature 20-foot (6.1 m)-high aluminum doors that slide into recessed pockets. Interiorstair railings,grillwork, and door trim are aluminum, as are Art Decotorchieres, doors for the building's 25elevators, and more than 10,000light fixtures.[3]
The building has many distinctive interior spaces, including the Great Hallentry foyer and theLaw Library.[3] The two-story Great Hall features Art Deco light fixtures and aterra-cotta tile floor with graymarble borders.[3] The Law Library, located on the fifth floor, is a two-story room distinguished by a pair of tall Art Deco lights and a 20-panel mural byMaurice Sterne.[3]
The building contains the largest historicart collection of any General Services Administration–built facility.[4]Sculpture is integrated into the fabric of the building.[3] SculptorC. Paul Jennewein was selected to create a unified design concept for the building's exterior and interior spaces, designing 57 sculptural elements for the building. His work ranged from the carved limestone figures for thepediments on the Constitution Avenue facade, to the aluminum Art Deco torchieres and light fixtures throughout the interior.[3] To ensure the themes of the artwork reflected the role of the department within American democracy, Jennewein hired philosopherHartley Burr Alexander.[22]
The interior of the US Department of Justice building contains many decorative wall paintings.[3] The building's extensive murals depict scenes of daily life from throughoutAmerican history and symbolic interpretations orallegories relating to the role ofjustice in American society.[3] In all, 68 murals were completed between 1935 and 1941, at a cost of $68,000, one percent of the cost of the building.[3] Mural artists includeGeorge Biddle,Henry Varnum Poor,John Steuart Curry,Boardman Robinson,Emil Bisttram andLeon Kroll.
The striking, colorfulconcretemosaics on the ceilings of the vehicular and pedestrian entryways from 9th and 10th Streets were created by the Washington, D.C. master craftsmanJohn Joseph Earley, an innovator in theaesthetic applications of the material.[3] Visible from the street, these mosaics retain much of the brilliance of their original colors.[3] A sculpture of the Revolutionary War heroNathan Hale byBela Pratt stands on the southern side of the building.
Spirit of Justice is a cast aluminum Art Deco statue designed by Jennewein. It depictsLady Justice, a woman wearing atoga-like dress with onebreast revealed and arms raised, and stands on display along with its male counterpartMajesty of Law in the Great Hall. Unlike many representations of Lady Justice,Spirit of Justice wears noblindfold to symbolizeblind justice. The statue measures 12.5 feet (150 inches) and wascommissioned in 1933 at a cost of $7000, and has stood withMajesty of Law in the Great Hall since 1936.[23]
In 1986, the statue was seen behind then–US Attorney GeneralEdwin Meese during apress conference as he discussed the final report of theAttorney General's Commission on Pornography, also known as the Meese Report. According to theAssociated Press, "photographers dived to the floor to capture the image of him raising the report in the air, with the partially nude female statue behind him".[24]
In 2002, under Attorney GeneralJohn Ashcroft, curtains were famously put up blocking the bare-breasted statue from view during speeches.[24] According to Justice Department spokesman Shane Hix, the department spent $8,000 to purchase blue drapes to hide them. Under Ashcroft the department had previously rented blue drapes at a cost of $2,000 every time the agency had a formal event.[24]ABC News reported that Ashcroft had ordered the statues covered because he did not like being photographed in front of them, but Hix insisted that the Attorney General was not aware of the change and that the nudity on the statue was not the reason for the purchase, citing instead "aesthetic" reasons, such as the background for television cameras.[24][25]
Internal e-mails later surfaced, referring to "hiding the statues" and "the episode was quickly seized upon bypundits andsatirists as a symbol of Ashcroft's allegedlypuritanical andcensorious bearing."[23] Journalist and writer Claire Braz-Valentine wrote an open lyrical letter to Ashcroft, which included the lines "John, John, John,/you've got your priorities all wrong."[26] Ashcroft joked about the incident on theLate Show with David Letterman in April 2002.[23] In May 2007, the "Inside Washington" column inNational Journal reported thatMonica Goodling, a former aide to Ashcroft, was responsible for the covering of the statue.[27] The curtains were removed on June 24, 2005, under Ashcroft's successorAlberto Gonzales. Justice Department spokesmanKevin Madden was quoted as saying that "the decision to remove the drapes was made by Paul Corts, assistant attorney general for administration, and that Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales 'agreed with the recommendation.'"[23]
Seagram Building Marks Apex Of Mies van der Rohe's Career
In 1903, he became a supervisor of bronze manufacturing for Tiffany Studios. Founder of General Bronze Corporation Dies – Products Adorn Leading Buildings
Massive Panes and Thousands of Smaller Ones Mark a Radical New Design
The General Bronze Corporation engineered and manufactured the ¼ inch thick aluminum panels
Recessed flush with the inside faces of the huge aluminum-sheathed columns, the curtain wall consists of a two-tone aluminum spandrel and sill panel and an 8-foot-high window of clear glass
Certain of the excellent future for aluminum window frames, the General Bronze Corporation, Long Island City, has started mass production of such items for residential use throughout the country
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