Hubert H. Humphrey Building
The Hubert H. Humphrey Building (originally the South Portal Building) is an eight-story office building at 200 Independence Avenue SW in Southwest Washington, D.C., United States. Owned by the U.S. federal government, it was built by the General Services Administration as the headquarters of the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW). It was completed in 1977 and designed by Marcel Breuer in the brutalist style. The building is one of two that Breuer designed for the U.S. federal government in the District of Columbia, along with the Robert C. Weaver Federal Building, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The building sits above a sewage line, the Third Street highway tunnel, and adjoining air ducts. Planning for a generic federal structure on the site began in the mid-1960s, and HEW secretary Wilbur J. Cohen decided to move the department's executive offices there. Construction began in May 1972 after several changes to plans. The Hubert H. Humphrey Building was dedicated on November 1, 1977, in honor of former U.S. Vice President and sitting U.S. Senator Hubert H. Humphrey. After the HEW's education component was given to the newly created United States Department of Education in 1979, the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) continued to occupy the structure. The Humphrey Building is set back significantly from Independence Avenue, and there is a large concrete plaza outside. The lowest two floors are set back from the upper stories, which are suspended from steel trusses above. The facade is composed of travertine, along with cast-in-place and precast concrete. The ground floor contains spaces including a lobby, exhibition space, and an auditorium. There are additional amenity areas on the second floor, along with three basements. The interiors are broken up by the main support columns and three cores, which contain elevators and other essential infrastructure. The third through seventh stories are mostly identical in layout, except for the sixth floor, which has the HHS secretary's suite. The interior walls were prefabricated with infrastructure such as wiring and piping. Meeting, office, and dining facilities occupy the penthouse level of the building, which is surrounded by a balcony. Commentary of the design has been mixed.
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Independence Avenue Southwest, Washington
Geographical coordinates (GPS) Address External links Nearby Places Show on map
Geographical coordinates (GPS)
| Latitude | Longitude |
|---|---|
| N 38.886666666667 ° | E -77.014444444444 ° |
Address
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Independence Avenue Southwest 200
20201 Washington
District of Columbia, United States
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