MANHATTAN BEACH, CA—C.W. Driver has just completed the $19 million Manhattan Beach Library development in Downtown Manhattan Beach. The builder built the property on a designer/builder contract, which meant that they had a heavy hand in the design of the building as well as the construction. According to Tom Jones, the project director at C.W. Driver, this type of contract is becoming increasingly popular.

“This was a design/build construction contract, so the owner contracted with us to complete the design and build the project, and this is a contract delivery method that is becoming more and more popular,” Jones tells GlobeSt.com. “It almost goes back to the master builder concept of construction where one entity designs and builds the property. This is efficient for owners because they only have to hold one contract, and all of the design and construction responsibilities rest on us. This is becoming more popular because it increases collaboration, minimizes risk and is a very cost effective way of doing construction.”

If the Manhattan Beach Library project is any indication, these types of contracts are successful. The development started in July 2013 with the goal of readapting the original 43-year-old library into a modern and efficient 22,000-square-foot building. The new property is LEED-Gold certified, and features double-paned floor-to-ceiling glass windows that take advantage of the ocean views. Incorporating those windows, which cover three sides of the building, was perhaps the biggest undertaking of the project. “The challenge was how do we keep this open and still make it energy efficient,” says Jones. “It is a LEED-Gold rated building, so a very energy efficient structure, but we wanted to have glass, which isn't energy efficient. We decided to install a double curtain wall with an inner and outer layer of glass over the entire three sides of the building. We blow draft air between the two panels to either heat or cool the building, and minimize the transfer of energy from the outside of the building.”

Architect Johnson Favaro created the original master plan of the building before C.W. Driver took over the design. “I think the original architect wanted to make something striking to go with the downtown area of Manhattan Beach, and to make the building that was already there larger, more efficient and a better learning tool for the local schools,” says Jones. The building has reading areas for adults, teens and children, a homework center, a 100-seat community meeting room and express-service checkout machines in the lobby, all of which will serve the community and the four schools located nearby.

In a recent interview on GlobeSt.com, C.W. Driver said that educational projects were one of the company's focuses. They recently built a recreational center at San Francisco State University with a curtain wall system and glass fiber-reinforced concrete panels. That project is also LEED certified.