Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego in La Jolla
The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (MCASD) has relied on A.O. Reed to renovate the existing museum to fix complications, reconfigure spacing, and provide entertainment venues. With this goal in mind, the vision is to host countless events showcasing not only precious pieces of artwork but the beautiful ocean view in La Jolla. The MCASD was not always a museum. Originally, Ellen Browning Scripps worked with internationally recognized Irving Gill in 1916 to build her home. By the 1940s, the home was converted into an art center and the rest is history. Throughout the years, the building has undergone several renovations to appeal to the changing audience.
A.O. Reed was brought on board as the mechanical contractor to provide HVAC and plumbing systems to the MCASD building. Since the building is known to have an expressive architectural layout, the renovation piqued the art community’s interest. On this 46,909 square-foot project, the building itself is an art piece. With that being said, the A.O. Reed team had to work closely with the owner, general contractor, and architect to ensure all moving parts were coming to a cohesive decision. This isn’t the only reason for the renovation. The museum had features and workspaces that weren’t accommodating or accessible for the museum’s guests.
The museum had separated exhibits that weren’t handicap accessible. The firm’s founder Annabelle Selldorf modified the space to provide handicap accessibility. Another challenge was how to transport artwork in and out of the building with ease and efficiency. The renovation provided a special elevator and entryway to transport the artwork. Lastly, the building was known to not take advantage of the beautiful oceanfront property. The renovation recentered everything in the museum to be facing the ocean.
A.O. Reed installed the heating hot water plant in the lower-level mechanical room. This system serves all levels. The chilled water plant is located on the roof serving all air handling units and four pipe fan coils in the Browar Lobby. In the Browar Lobby and meeting spaces, our team installed linear trench drains for the operable panda doors. These accordion-type doors are used when the MCASD is hosting events. Working with the mechanical engineer and architect, our team realized we needed to install an air floor ducting system. This is common in museums as the ductwork is buried in the concrete instead of the floor, allowing air to be ventilated out of the walls. That way, the air filtration systems are not present throughout the museum to preserve its aesthetic appeal.
The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego was completed in June 2022. Our team turned over the building to the client with every plan and artistic motive accomplished. The guests, art community, and client were beyond pleased with the result. With a more flexible floor plan and an additional 30,000 square feet of gallery space, the new museum will house beautiful pieces of artwork for generations to come.
