Market: Museums + Culture

Concept for the Visitor Education Center at the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial is Approved

Posted on by Julian Fentress

© Fentress Architects

National Capital Planning Commission & Commission of Fine Arts Approve Fentress Architects Design

ARLINGTON, VA – The Pentagon Memorial Fund, Inc. (PMF) recently passed a critical milestone in the development of a Visitor Education Center at the site of the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial. The concept design by Fentress Architects was approved by the Commission of Fine Arts (CFA), which follows approval in July from the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC).  The Visitor Education Center will be located within walking distance of the Pentagon Memorial and in close proximity to Arlington National Cemetery and the US Air Force Memorial. 

“With these approvals, the PMF has reached a milestone that will allow us to take the next step in building a visitors’ education center to tell the story of the terrorist attacks, the victims and responders and the subsequent national and international.” said Pentagon Memorial Fund, Inc. Board Chairman and President Sean T. Connaughton. “This history must be preserved and accurately passed on to future American generations.  We must never forget.”

While the Pentagon site was the first to have a 9/11 memorial, it is also the only site still lacking a visitors’ center.  The 9/11 Pentagon Memorial Visitor Education Center will honor the 184 victims of the attack on the Pentagon as well as explore the local, national, and international response to 9/11 and subsequent Global War on Terror.  The Visitor Education Center is anticipated to function as a national convening space for the examination of these responses, and their continuing impact.

“The new Visitor Education Center at the 9/11 Memorial will be a dynamic structure—imbued with meaning, conducive to contemplation, and encouraging of resilience,” explains Curtis Worth Fentress, Founder and Principal-in-Charge of Design at Fentress Architects.

Over $14 million has been raised to support the creation of the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial’s Visitor Education Center from donors including Amazon & Amazon Web Services, the Diana Davis Spencer Foundation, Transurban, Accenture, the J. Willard & Alice S. Marriott Foundation, and the Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation.  With these two key approvals in place, the Pentagon Memorial Fund has launched a campaign to raise the balance of funds necessary to complete the Visitor Education Center in time for the 25th commemoration of the 9/11 attacks, which will occur in 2026.   

About Pentagon Memorial Fund. The PMF was formed in 2003 by the families of the victims of the attack. In 2008, the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial was dedicated in a public and private partnership to always remember the events at the Pentagon. The PMF continues to support the Memorial with private funding and volunteer docents. Up to one million annual visitors experience the memorial today including many school groups from all over the United States. For more information on PMF, including how to give, visit pentagonmemorial.org.

Contact: press@pentagon-memorial.org // (202) 417 6590

About Fentress Architects: Fentress Architects is a global design firm dedicated to creating sustainable and iconic architecture that enhances the human environment. Founded in 1980 by Curtis Fentress, the firm’s portfolio serves over 650 million people annually, valued at over $47 billion, and has earned more than 600 distinctions for design excellence and innovation. For more information about Fentress Architects, visit fentressarchitects.com. Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or LinkedIn.

Visitor Education Center Design Team

  • Design Architect & Architect of Record: Fentress Architects, Ltd.
  • Owner’s Representative:  Mark G. Anderson Consultants, Inc.
  • Exhibit Design: The PRD Group, LLC
  • Contractor: James G. Davis Construction Corp.

© Fentress Architects

© Fentress Architects

© Fentress Architects

© Fentress Architects

© Fentress Architects

Denver Art Museum Martin Building Renovation Museum Wins Architizer A+ Awards Popular Choice Winner

Posted on by Julian Fentress
Denver Art Museum Sie Welcome Center

The Denver Art Museum Martin Building Renovation has achieved yet another remarkable milestone by winning the Architizer A+ Awards Popular Choice Winner accolade. This recognition highlights the project’s profound impact on the world of architecture and art. Through an unique blend of visionary design and meticulous execution, the renovation breathes new life into the museum. The Popular Choice Winner title reflects the overwhelming support and admiration from the public and the design community alike. This accomplishment further solidifies the Martin Building Renovation’s status as a transformative work of architecture.

Fentress Architects: Pioneering Sustainable Architecture Since the Early 1990s

Posted on by Jessica del Pilar

Fentress Architects was founded in 1980 on the heels of two significant energy crises: the Arab Oil Embargo of 1973 and the Iranian Revolution of 1978.  Among the many innovations and movements precipitated by these events is the modern sustainable architecture and green building movement.  The American Institute of Architects (AIA) Energy Committee was founded in 1973. Later, in 1990, the AIA Committee on the Environment was founded. 

Sustainability Pioneers

Within 10 years of its founding, Fentress had won several prominent commissions. The following contributed substantively to the sustainable architecture movement:

  • Denver International Airport’s Passenger Terminal Complex: The imaginative roof pays visual homage to the majestic Rocky Mountains. It also utilizes the site’s more than 3,000 annual hours of sunshine to provide exceptional energy savings and biophilic benefits for travelers and staff alike. 
  • Natural Resources Building for the State of Washington: The Natural Resource Building was a forerunner in the development of indoor air quality standards and the US Green Building Council’s (USGBC) LEED program. “The facilities will provide the public and employees an enjoyable, energy efficient and healthy work environment using new air quality design requirements, which will lead the way for future standards in our nation.” — K. Wendy Holden, Former Director, State of Washington Department of GSA
  • National Wildlife Art Museum: Irregular lines and the use of native stone allow the museum to embody the spirit of its delicate site and essence of the Jackson community, while setting new standards in quality and architectural design sensitivity for the area.  The warm, humanistic design expertly responds to important challenges. These challenges include developmental pressures and their impact on the natural environment and plant and animal communities.
National Museum of Wildlife Art
Passenger Terminal Complex at Denver International Airport
Natural Resources Building

LEED Firsts

Since the launch of USGBC’s LEED Program in 1998, Fentress Architects has designed over 50 LEED-certified buildings that comprise nearly 10 million square feet, including:

  • California Department of Education Headquarters: In 2006, three years after achieving LEED Gold, the California DOE Headquarters became the first building in California, and second largest building in the world, to be awarded LEED EB Platinum certification.
  • Green Square Complex in Raleigh, North Carolina: With a 10,000-square-foot green roof, a system that eliminates stormwater runoff—North Carolina’s number one cause of water pollution—and so much more, Green Square Complex became North Carolina’s first LEED Platinum facility.
  • Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC): Terminal B was the first entirely new passenger terminal west of the Mississippi River to become LEED Silver Certified.  Terminal A is “self-certified.” The rental car facility, or ConRAC, follwed “best practices” for green building, including a roof-mounted 3.4-acre, 1.1-megawatt solar array.
  • Terminal C at Orlando International Airport (MCO): Terminal C is on target to become the first new LEED v4.1 certified passenger terminal in America. 
Green Square Complex
Mineta San Jose International Airport
California Department of Education Headquarters

Looking Ahead

At Fentress Architects, we believe we have a responsibility to future generations to effect positive change on our natural environment.  So, in addition to being seasoned LEED-certification experts, Fentress team members are also highly skilled and knowledge in the burgeoning areas of:

  • Net Zero Architecture: including net zero energy, net zero carbon.
  • Regenerative Design: including ILFI’s Living Building Challenge
  • Sustainable Landscape Practices: including Green Business Certification Inc.’s Sustainable SITES Initiative (SITES)
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