Coffey Hall is a 5-story concrete-framed, limestone-clad structure on Loyola University’s Lakeshore Campus. The hall was once used for student housing and is now utilized for laboratories and offices for the Psychology department.

K&H was tasked with providing structural engineering services for the new addition of a 5-story elevator shaft and grade level lobby in conjunction with the 50,000 sf renovation. K&H’s scope of services included design of the foundations, steel lobby framing, limestone cladding attachments, and the elevator shaft walls. Tapping into our extensive concrete repair expertise, our team provided design and specification for repair and partial replacement of the exterior concrete stair/walkway.

The design parameters of the project required an in-depth knowledge of the behavior of the existing structure in relation to the new addition and careful consideration of the details. The K&H team worked with the architect in developing other options for the elevator placement including an interior shaft. In the end, the best option was to place the elevator outside the building as an addition, which provided the opportunity for an attractive lobby entrance with large cantilevered overhangs.