American Campus Communities and Georgetown University Partnership Creates Sustainable, Inclusive Student Housing

Spotlight: 55 H Street and Henle Village

Georgetown University and American Campus Communities (ACC) recently celebrated several milestones in their public-private partnership (P3) to create sustainable, inclusive new student housing communities. The new Henle Village development broke ground, and 55 H Street won many of the student housing industry’s most prestigious awards. Together these developments are leading the reshaping of Georgetown’s Hilltop Campus and its Capitol Campus.
 

Henle Village Groundbreaking

On Sept. 7, 2023, Georgetown University hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for Henle Village, the latest residential redevelopment project on its main Hilltop campus. Henle Village represents the first phase of the strategic housing plan that ACC developed for Georgetown to advance the housing initiatives outlined in its University Campus Plan 2017–2036. It is slated to open in Fall 2025. Following the University’s focus on renovations, Henle Village will demolish three existing buildings and construct two 8-story buildings that are connected on the first floor and house 740 students. In addition to amenities such as private and group study rooms and wellness areas, the community will include new offices for the University Counseling & Psychiatric Services. Henle Village is targeting LEED Platinum certification with an all-electric design and a thermally efficient building envelope that are part of a holistic energy model set to reduce energy consumption, water use and other natural resources. Building design also includes a green roof with solar panels, low-carbon concrete construction, rain gardens and bioswales, and heritage tree preservation.

 

55 H Street Wins Awards

Henle Village follows in the footsteps of 55 H Street, a LEED Platinum-certified project that won Student Housing Business Magazine’s 2023 Innovator Awards for On-Campus Best Architecture and On-Campus Best Use of Green & Sustainable Construction/Development. It was also the Silver Winner for Best Development & Design, Student Housing, MHN at Multi-Housing News’ 2023 Excellence Awards.

Working in collaboration with Georgetown University, the building architect RAMSA, and ACC, Elkus Manfredi Architects designed the interior spaces of 55 H Street. Our shared goal was to foster community among the residents and activate the building with elements that celebrate Georgetown University’s heritage, engage students with the Capitol Hill neighborhood, and highlight the University’s commitment to education and sustainability.

• Heritage: We developed 55 H Street on a half-acre lot in downtown Washington, D.C. just blocks from the United States Capitol and close to the University's academic facilities near Union Station. Recognizing that students come to Georgetown University partly because of its built environment - the iconic campus and historic buildings - the design of 55 H Street aims to celebrate the University’s rich heritage while providing a space that is modern and forward facing. The 12-story building’s innovative design offers studios and apartments for 476 undergraduate, graduate and law students, as well as retail, a large community center, courtyards and a rooftop common space. Amenities include meeting and office spaces, exercise studios, a theater and a full-size community kitchen.

• Sustainability: The 100-percent electric 55 H Street features a thermally efficient building envelope, green roof, exterior glazing and solar shading. The community has a bioretention garden and employs a state-of-the-art energy monitoring system to empower residents to monitor energy used by the building and produced by rooftop solar panels. The building also features a green wall on the ground floor that greets residents as they enter and environmental stats displayed on monitors in the lobby that highlight and educate about the water- and energy-saving features on each floor, encouraging students to limit their consumption.

• Inclusive Design: Elkus Manfredi held two open houses—one with the Georgetown University law school and graduate students and another in the student center of the main campus—to gather feedback on 55 H Street’s design. The design team embraced a comprehensive, inclusive approach that mirrors the rich diversity and forward-thinking ethos of the student body and wider University. The design fosters a sense of belonging and community, while also enabling individuals to have private spaces for focus and rest. Shared areas are versatile, supporting a wide range of activities, from group study sessions to social gatherings. And a reflection room, which is open to people of all faiths, features the word “Peace” written in multiple languages on its walls.

For more information on ACC’s public-partnerships with Georgetown and other universities, visit our CASE STUDIES.