By using steel framing instead of wood, a design and construction team in coastal Virginia was able to substantially increase the height/usable area-and potential revenue—of a senior—living condominium building. Similar situations are emerging throughout the country as light-gauge cold-formed steel framing components gain favor for light construction projects with specific needs.
The result at the Atlantic Shores Retirement Community in Virginia Beach, Va., is a beautiful finished structure that is everything the owners had asked for and more. Not only is it 50 percent bigger—both in height and usable square footage—than was originally planned, but it was built to the owners’ specific “above and beyond” wind requirements to withstand the rigors of its location, just one mile away from the hurricane-prone Atlantic Ocean.