United States Tax Court Building
Encyclopedia
The United States Tax Court Building is a courthouse
located at 400 Second Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C., in the Judiciary Square
neighborhood.
It serves as the headquarters of the United States Tax Court
.
Built in 1972, the building and its landscaped plaza occupy the entire block bound by D Street, E Street, Second Street, and Third street.
in 1962. In an attempt to improve federal buildings, the committee recommended architecture that would convey the "dignity, enterprise, vigor, and stability of the American Government". Designers and officials were encouraged to pay special attention to site selection
and layout, including landscape development.
In the 1930s, the U.S. Board of Tax Appeals, later renamed the Tax Court of the United States, was housed in the Internal Revenue Service Building in the Federal Triangle
. By 1956, overcrowding and the desire to separate judicial and executive powers led to initial attempts to relocate the court. In 1962, Secretary of the Treasury
Douglas Dillon appealed to the U.S. General Services Administration
(GSA) to incorporate funds for the design of a new building in its upcoming budget. GSA subsequently allocated $450,000.
In 1966, GSA approved Lundy's concept for a building with strong end masses, a central cantilevered courtroom block, and a landscaped plaza. Despite enthusiastic support for the project, the Vietnam War
triggered funding cuts that delayed construction until 1972, when GSA secured a site and held a groundbreaking ceremony. The completed building was dedicated on November 22, 1974, the fiftieth anniversary of the Revenue Act that created the court. Employees occupied the building on January 20, 1975. Due to escalating construction costs, the plaza was not completed until 1981.
Lundy's design won a GSA Honor Award in the first Design Awards Program held in 1972.
in the District of Columbia, but also in the government's inventory. Hailing the design in 1967, distinguished New York Times architectural critic Ada Louise Huxtable described the plans for the U.S. Tax Court Building as "a progressive, sensitive, contemporary solution fully responsive to Washington's classical tradition and yet fully part of the mid-20th century - a period of exceptional vigor and beauty in the history of structure and design".
The building presents itself as a cube that has been deconstructed into four units: a dramatic cantilever
ed courtroom block on the front with office blocks on each side and to the rear. These four components surmount a single-story base called the podium. The building is clad in flame-treated Royal Pearl granite from Georgia and bronze-tinted, heat-absorbing, glare-reducing glass with slim bronze-anodized aluminum mullions. Lundy's skillful use of materials and voids between blocks articulate the units.
Lundy employed state-of-the-art engineering technology to achieve his design. The building's structure not only allowed Lundy's design to be securely executed, but also is a significant engineering accomplishment. Compression and post-tensioned bridges, steel cables hidden within the building's walls, and six slender columns together support the imposing 4,000-ton cantilevered courtroom block, which projects over the entrance. The compression and tension bridges also function as interior circulation bridges. In uniting the interior and exterior of the building, Lundy stated, "Inside this building, you will always have a sense of where you are and of the sky outside". The building's exterior forms indicate the interior spatial arrangements.
The interior is defined by a soaring four-story central public hall, also called the Hall of Justice, crowned by a clerestory roof that admits light into the space. Lundy created a hierarchy of interior spaces through his use of materials, which were restrained yet wholly appropriate for the Modern era. The walls of the public hall consist of exposed, board-formed concrete and the exterior bronze-tinted glass curtain wall. The floor is covered with Royal Pearl granite pavers. The same granite also surfaces the original security desk in the center of the hall. The upper three stories of the hall consist of projecting cantilevered galleries that provide circulation for the upper stories. A screen of louvered teak strips extends from the second to fourth floors and allows natural light to filter into the spaces. The hall ceiling is covered in tongue-in-groove hemlock planks.
The courtroom block projects from the east wall of the public hall. On the third floor, a large ceremonial courtroom is flanked by two smaller courtrooms. A curved wall encloses the central courtroom, which contains a semi-circular judges' bench. Courtrooms are finished in full-height teak veneer panels and strips. Hemlock grilles cover the ceilings.
Lundy designed the plaza, located on the Second Street side of the building, with a central reflecting pool flanked by landscaped areas. Interstate 395
runs directly beneath the plaza. Its formal design provides an appropriate approach to the colossal flight of stairs leading into the monumental building.
Courthouse
A courthouse is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In most other English speaking countries, buildings which house courts of law are simply...
located at 400 Second Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C., in the Judiciary Square
Judiciary Square
Judiciary Square is a neighborhood in Northwest Washington, D.C., the vast majority of which is occupied by various federal and municipal courthouses and office buildings...
neighborhood.
It serves as the headquarters of the United States Tax Court
United States Tax Court
The United States Tax Court is a federal trial court of record established by Congress under Article I of the U.S. Constitution, section 8 of which provides that the Congress has the power to "constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court"...
.
Built in 1972, the building and its landscaped plaza occupy the entire block bound by D Street, E Street, Second Street, and Third street.
Building history
Government officials selected master architect Victor A. Lundy, renowned for his sculptural architectural designs and innovative uses of engineering technology, to design the building in 1965. They awarded Lundy the contract without competition, expressing their confidence in his abilities to design a Modern landmark. The design follows the "Guiding Principles for Federal Architecture" issued by the Ad Hoc Committee on Federal Office Space at the request of President John F. KennedyJohn F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
in 1962. In an attempt to improve federal buildings, the committee recommended architecture that would convey the "dignity, enterprise, vigor, and stability of the American Government". Designers and officials were encouraged to pay special attention to site selection
Site selection
Site Selection indicates the practice of new facility location, both for business and government. Site selection involves measuring the needs of a new project against the merits of potential locations...
and layout, including landscape development.
In the 1930s, the U.S. Board of Tax Appeals, later renamed the Tax Court of the United States, was housed in the Internal Revenue Service Building in the Federal Triangle
Federal Triangle
The Federal Triangle is a triangular area in Washington, D.C. formed by 15th Street NW, Constitution Avenue NW, Pennsylvania Avenue NW, and E Street NW. Federal Triangle is occupied by 10 large city and federal office buildings, all of which are part of the Pennsylvania Avenue National Historic...
. By 1956, overcrowding and the desire to separate judicial and executive powers led to initial attempts to relocate the court. In 1962, Secretary of the Treasury
United States Secretary of the Treasury
The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...
Douglas Dillon appealed to the U.S. General Services Administration
General Services Administration
The General Services Administration is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1949 to help manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies. The GSA supplies products and communications for U.S...
(GSA) to incorporate funds for the design of a new building in its upcoming budget. GSA subsequently allocated $450,000.
In 1966, GSA approved Lundy's concept for a building with strong end masses, a central cantilevered courtroom block, and a landscaped plaza. Despite enthusiastic support for the project, the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
triggered funding cuts that delayed construction until 1972, when GSA secured a site and held a groundbreaking ceremony. The completed building was dedicated on November 22, 1974, the fiftieth anniversary of the Revenue Act that created the court. Employees occupied the building on January 20, 1975. Due to escalating construction costs, the plaza was not completed until 1981.
Lundy's design won a GSA Honor Award in the first Design Awards Program held in 1972.
Architecture
Describing his landmark building, Lundy stated, "What I've done is taken a monolithic block and broken it apart". Striking and bold, the building exemplifies the culmination of Modern design principles coupled with technological advances that allowed for a new type of building. The building is not only one of the most sophisticated and successful examples of ModernismModernism
Modernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
in the District of Columbia, but also in the government's inventory. Hailing the design in 1967, distinguished New York Times architectural critic Ada Louise Huxtable described the plans for the U.S. Tax Court Building as "a progressive, sensitive, contemporary solution fully responsive to Washington's classical tradition and yet fully part of the mid-20th century - a period of exceptional vigor and beauty in the history of structure and design".
The building presents itself as a cube that has been deconstructed into four units: a dramatic cantilever
Cantilever
A cantilever is a beam anchored at only one end. The beam carries the load to the support where it is resisted by moment and shear stress. Cantilever construction allows for overhanging structures without external bracing. Cantilevers can also be constructed with trusses or slabs.This is in...
ed courtroom block on the front with office blocks on each side and to the rear. These four components surmount a single-story base called the podium. The building is clad in flame-treated Royal Pearl granite from Georgia and bronze-tinted, heat-absorbing, glare-reducing glass with slim bronze-anodized aluminum mullions. Lundy's skillful use of materials and voids between blocks articulate the units.
Lundy employed state-of-the-art engineering technology to achieve his design. The building's structure not only allowed Lundy's design to be securely executed, but also is a significant engineering accomplishment. Compression and post-tensioned bridges, steel cables hidden within the building's walls, and six slender columns together support the imposing 4,000-ton cantilevered courtroom block, which projects over the entrance. The compression and tension bridges also function as interior circulation bridges. In uniting the interior and exterior of the building, Lundy stated, "Inside this building, you will always have a sense of where you are and of the sky outside". The building's exterior forms indicate the interior spatial arrangements.
The interior is defined by a soaring four-story central public hall, also called the Hall of Justice, crowned by a clerestory roof that admits light into the space. Lundy created a hierarchy of interior spaces through his use of materials, which were restrained yet wholly appropriate for the Modern era. The walls of the public hall consist of exposed, board-formed concrete and the exterior bronze-tinted glass curtain wall. The floor is covered with Royal Pearl granite pavers. The same granite also surfaces the original security desk in the center of the hall. The upper three stories of the hall consist of projecting cantilevered galleries that provide circulation for the upper stories. A screen of louvered teak strips extends from the second to fourth floors and allows natural light to filter into the spaces. The hall ceiling is covered in tongue-in-groove hemlock planks.
The courtroom block projects from the east wall of the public hall. On the third floor, a large ceremonial courtroom is flanked by two smaller courtrooms. A curved wall encloses the central courtroom, which contains a semi-circular judges' bench. Courtrooms are finished in full-height teak veneer panels and strips. Hemlock grilles cover the ceilings.
Lundy designed the plaza, located on the Second Street side of the building, with a central reflecting pool flanked by landscaped areas. Interstate 395
Interstate 395 (District of Columbia-Virginia)
Interstate 395 in Washington, D.C., and Virginia is a 13 mile long spur route that begins at a junction with Interstate 95 in Springfield, Virginia and ends in northwest Washington, D.C. It passes underneath the National Mall near the United States Capitol and ends at a junction with U.S...
runs directly beneath the plaza. Its formal design provides an appropriate approach to the colossal flight of stairs leading into the monumental building.
Significant events
- 1924: Revenue Act creates the United States Board of Tax Appeals
- 1966: Commission of Fine Arts approves Lundy's design
- 1972: Building receives GSA Honor Award in the First Biennial Design Awards Program
- 1972-1974: U.S. Tax Court Building constructed
- 1974: Building dedicated on 50th anniversary of the Revenue Act
- 1981: Landscaped plaza completed
Building facts
- Location: 400 Second Street, NW
- Architect: Victor A. Lundy
- Construction Dates: 1972-1974
- Architectural Style: Modern (Formalism)
- Primary Materials: Granite and bronze-tinted glass
- Prominent Features: Cantilevered courtroom block; Hall of Justice; Landscaped plaza
External links
- Material on this page was initially produced by the U.S. General Services Administration, an agency of the United States government, and is reproduced with the express permission of that agency. All works derived from this material must credit the U.S. General Services Administration. The original text produced by the General Services Administration is available here.