Designs for LaVale Library, Intergenerational Center, and Beth Tfiloh Sanctuary show the value of third places.
Severn Intergenerational Center
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) Central Pennsylvania recognized Murphy & Dittenhafer Architects with three Design Excellence Awards this year. The awards are for additions and renovations at the LaVale Library in Western Maryland, the new Intergenerational Center building in Severn, Maryland, and the yet-unbuilt sanctuary improvement design for the Beth Tfiloh Synagogue.
While all three designs are inherently different, they reflect the value of third places, or public spaces other than work and home where people can gather and foster community. “We don't design projects to win awards,” says M&D President Frank Dittenhafer, “but it’s confirmation from peers within the industry that we might be doing something right.”
LaVale Library: An engaging, functional atmosphere
Despite LaVale’s compact site, M&D was able to design an improved array of rooms and spaces for LaVale Library that better prioritized engagement and functionality. This includes a completely new Community suite consisting of a multi-purpose room, kitchenette, and restrooms, which can function independent of the rest of the library. Additionally, the new main reading room features glass walls with tremendous views of the Allegheny Mountains.
According to the AIA Central PA awards jury of architects from Dallas, “The scale and vibe of the reading rooms is impeccable, and the choice of materials and furnishings is beautiful. The main reading room has the right amount of irregularity to invite library patrons to wander and explore. The connection and transparency between the building and the community makes this project stand out.”
Severn Intergenerational Center: Maximizing resources
With limited public and private funding, Murphy & Dittenhafer’s design of the Severn Intergenerational Center far exceeded expectations. It’s a shared facility with two parts—one is a senior center, and the other is a new facility for the Boys and Girls Club—with a shared multipurpose gym space between them. M&D integrated a pervasive public art program funded by the Maryland State Council for the arts into the design of the new building.
“It is a successful outcome with solid programmatic design balancing the intergenerational users in open spaces, and the community aspect of the awning is a lovely touch,” the AIA jury stated. “This is a wonderful example of how a handful of well-conceived moves can make a big impact when resources are limited.”
Sanctuary Improvements at Beth Tfiloh Synagogue: Unforgettable design
It’s rare that AIA honors unbuilt designs with awards, but M&D’s preliminary sanctuary concepts for improvements at the Beth Tfiloh Synagogue in Pikesville, Maryland made the cut. M&D won an invited competition of the top architects from the Washington D.C. and Baltimore metropolitan area to complete the design, making improvements upon the 1961 landmark building originally designed by esteemed Architect Morris Lapidus, more famously known as the architect of the Eden Roc Hotel in Miami.
The goal of transforming the sanctuary into a more intimate environment for services and events without compromising the architectural fabric was no easy feat. However, as the AIA jury put it, “The architects were not afraid to make the acoustical and lighting improvements needed while simultaneously celebrating the historic architecture and iconography. Flexibility to convert the space from a smaller, more intimate room to a larger capacity for the high holidays is done sensitively to keep the full volume of the space visible.”
In just over 30 years, M&D has won 239 awards for their work, including 68 from AIA Central PA. Despite the recognition, Frank Dittenhafer recognizes that it’s not the firm’s projects, but the users’. That’s what third places are really all about, anyway. “We like to let the users determine how to use what we design,” he says, adding that “achieving excellence in Architecture or whatever one does is always positive.”
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