Fred D. Thompson United States Courthouse and Federal Building
The Challenge
Located on 3-and-a-half acres in the heart of downtown Nashville, the Fred D. Thompson U.S. Courthouse and Federal Building is a powerful symbol of justice.
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Client
General Services Administration (GSA); Joint venture with Michael Graves Architecture
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Location
Nashville, TN
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Size
280,000 square feet
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Awards
LEED Gold
The Design Solution
Part of the original design team, TMP served as the architect of record, collaborating with Michael Graves & Associates to provide final construction documents for the design.
The courthouse features a grand facade with a curved wall and center rotunda. Flanking towers contain jury suites, emphasizing the important role of the public in the judicial process. The building houses eight courtrooms and 11 chambers, and the design is balanced and symmetrical, inspired by the balanced Scales of Justice.
The courthouse's unique circulation arc design feature serves a functional purpose — it allows users to get where they need to be quicker and maximizes the entire building's footprint. Plus, the layout allowed for the main building to be "tucked" back, opening space for a public plaza and grand entrance rotunda. The plaza itself transforms a required security buffer into a sustainable and pedestrian-friendly park. It uses rain gardens and bio-swales to manage rainwater naturally.
For better protection and efficiency, walls were designed with carbon-fiber reinforced concrete. Not only does this exceed safety standards, but keeps the building cool, quiet, and remarkably energy-efficient.
The Design Impact
In 2008, the original project was delayed due to the national financial crisis and reallocation of funding. Although TMP's design and documentation was revised by a separate design-build team, original elements were carried through to completion, leaving a mark on the legacy building in downtown Nashville.
