Earth month seems like a good point to reflect on the recently completed and now fully occupied KIPP Academy Lynn project in Lynn, MA. Part of the challenge associated with designing this project was making the school comfortable during the warmer months without the luxury of having a budget that could support full air conditioning. While oftentimes this problem is lamented, we saw it as an opportunity to be creative with the building systems and fenestration to provide low-energy, passive, and (most importantly) low-first cost climate control…
Arrowstreet invited Dennis Carlberg to speak to the firm about his efforts as the Director of Sustainability at Boston University. I was able to attend the discussion and I wanted to share the exciting things that are going on at this large university. As with any university or institutional campus, BU has a large environmental impact. BU understands it is important to reduce that footprint and in 2009 they created the Director of Sustainability position to do just that. Dennis Carlberg, the first to hold this position, jumped right into the role and has facilitated several programs over the last four years to create sustainable awareness and action on campus. Carlberg noted that one of the first things necessary to determine how to reduce the university’s footprint was to know exactly what their impact was. They assessed exactly how much energy, water, and waste that the university consumed and produced. Once that was determined then they could measure their success of the programs…
We are all becoming more aware of the complex environmental problems that exist today; both the architectural practice and individuals are encouraged to be mindful of our planet by reducing waste, recycling, and reusing materials. One way individuals can help in this effort is to utilize architectural reclamation centers when remodeling or renovating their home or property. These centers take donated building materials and items and sell them at bargain prices to homeowners and renovators. It’s a resource that provides a benefit to the environment as items get reused instead of sent to the landfill. And furthermore, donated items are tax deductible! A few years ago, I donated to Boston Building Resources Reuse Center when doing a home renovation project. The process was extremely simple: I just called and set up a time for them to pick up the items right at my door.
There are a number of Architectural Reclamation centers around the New England area. For more information, visit the Boston Building Resources website.
[Part 3 of a series of posts from ICSC's RetailGreen conference.]
Last year, at ICSC’s RetailGreen conference, Don Moseley from Walmart gave an amazing 15 minute presentation on how codes differ from one municipality to another, and especially how they vary even more from the new International Green Construction Code (IgCC). Although it sounds wonky, Mr. Moseley used the specific example of how the prescribed number of plumbing fixtures can vary from code to code, with the delta being as much as 20 fixtures for the same size Walmart store. Same store footprint, same demands, totally different plumbing requirements. Importantly, when a retailer has thousands of locations across the world, it’s more difficult to plan, and it hits the bottom line in myriad ways.
This year, Mr. Moseley showed what Walmart has been doing on their roofs…
The start of a new year brings optimism and refreshed energy for the future, and also a chance to look back on accomplishments from the previous year. 2012 was a busy year at Arrowstreet. We celebrated the opening of two new charter schools in the Boston metro area, the corporate headquarters for Rechler Equity in Long Island, White Elephant Village Inn in Nantucket, a T-station garage and cool new bridge in Revere, and an LL Bean store in Danbury. The Arrowstreet construction banner was flying high in 2012…
We recently received news that the Rechler Corporate Headquarters has received a LEED Certified level. This marks Rechler Equity’s first building to receive LEED certification. The project incorporated numerous sustainable features, including high-efficiency systems and fixtures, a super-insulated building envelope, stormwater management dry wells, and extensive use of daylight harvesting. Wood, one of the three dominant materials in the office design, consists in part of lumber reclaimed from industrial flooring. Congratulations to Rechler Equity Partners and the whole project team for a great achievement!
[Part 1 of a series of posts from ICSC's RetailGreen conference.]
In the first General Session of the ICSC RetailGreen conference in Phoenix last month, I moderated a panel discussion called “Disrupt and Interrupt”. Since it was the beginning of the conference, we wanted to speak broadly about sustainability issues that retail developers encounter when planning projects and business initiatives. The panel consisted of Audi Banny of Estée Lauder, George Caraghiaur of Simon Property Group, Jim Hanna of Starbucks, and Riggs Kubiak of Honest Buildings. Some of my questions were pre-planned, but we had fun taking live questions through an email account and a scrolling twitter-feed which we projected above the stage. It all worked quite well. Audience members kept me well-stocked with comments and questions.
USGBC MA is organizing several activities in the Boston area for the first annual Green Apple Day of Service this Saturday, September 29th. “Where we learn matters” is the theme of this national day of service, organized by the Center for Green Schools at the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). Sign up for one of the activities on the Green Apple website or organize your own, and be sure to let others know about these activities.
I recently presented on the topic of Green Procurement at the regional National Contract Management Association (NCMA) conference and workshops. The NCMA is a professional association for those in the field of procurement and contract management. While I often speak about sustainable design, the U. S. Green Building Council and the LEED rating systems to groups in the world of real estate development, building design and construction, but the invitation to speak at this workshop presented an opportunity to talk to a different audience, one that is focused on purchasing products and services. A majority of the attendees were from military and government agencies and companies that contract with them…
BAC Master of Design Studies Sustainable Design from The Boston Architectural College on Vimeo.
I wanted to take a moment to share this video, put out by the BAC’s sustainable design program. The beginning shows our Artists for Humanity project, the shots taken during a tour I gave for students in the sustainable design degree program.
For more information, see the BAC’s page on the program.
Jim Batchelor will be presenting work on Photovolatic Installations at the Brookline Climate Week 2012 in a panel on Saturday, January 28th. His focus will be on partnerships between non-profit and for-profit providers to accomplish PV installations. For more information on the conference, go to http://climatechangeactionbrookline.org/calendar.php.
The International Council of Shopping Center’s (ICSC’s) annual “RetailGreen” Conference was recently held in Phoenix, Arizona. It’s the only green conference that exists primarily to serve the retail development industry. In planning meetings for the event, my colleagues and I on the Program Committee spent a lot of time conjuring up panel presentations and roundtable discussions on the sustainability topics most relevant to ICSC members…
In late 2010, the United States Green Building Council expanded the LEED for Homes certification with a new Multifamily Midrise category, in order for 4-6 story residential buildings to pursue LEED certification. As the original LEED for Homes certification was designed for single family and low rise multi-family, the program did not accommodate the special demands of the slightly taller projects, especially with the increased density of living units…
I will be speaking this November at Build Boston at a panel discussing sustainability, today’s realities, and innovative efforts to move towards or even beyond net-zero and carbon neutral design. Also on the panel are Tom Kennedy and Mark Walsh-Cooke of ARUP and Bill Taylor of CRJA…
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Green roof of Kaptun shopping center, part of Urriðaholt master plan -
Icelandic Institute of Natural History // Detail of double wall construction -
Siggy Ragnarsson, project manager, gave me a tour of Harpa -
Harpa, the Icelandic National Concert Hall -
Harpa, the Icelandic National Concert Hall
While in Reykjavík recently, I took some time to visit several projects that Arrowstreet has been involved with over the last few years. I visited Kaptun, a shopping center outside of the city with a 30,000-square-foot green roof, which was part of Arrowstreet’s master plan for Urriðaholt. Then I toured the Icelandic Institute of Natural History, for which Arrowstreet led the sustainability design effort…
Arrowstreet’s work on the Green Roof Study for the City of Boston was honored with an award in the Technology/Product category by the Massachusetts Chapter of the US Green Building Council. The winners “demonstrates the best forward-looking ideas that are replicable and cost effective.”
Ten years ago, using the word sustainability in conversation likely won its speaker the ignoble title tree-hugger. Five years ago, the term garnered friendlier reactions while its institution was more of a “nice to have.” But today, sustainability is not just normal; it’s imperative…
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Icelandic Institute of Natural History // Photo by Vigfus Birgisson -
Icelandic Institute of Natural History // Photo by Vigfus Birgisson -
Icelandic Institute of Natural History // Photo by Vigfus Birgisson -
Icelandic Institute of Natural History // Photo by Arkis -
Icelandic Institute of Natural History // Photo by Vigfus Birgisson
Arrowstreet, as part of an international design team, created a sustainable master plan for a mixed-use community on a spectacular hilltop site in Garðabær outside of Reykjavik. The Icelandic Institute of Natural History was the first office/lab building to be built in the project, and is already getting noticed around the world for both its beautiful design and its sustainability features. Arrowstreet served as design consultants to the architect-of-record, Icelandic firm ARKIS, and led the sustainability effort…
Rock removal blasting is currently underway at the New KIPP Academy Lynn site in Lynn, MA. The effort has been ongoing for a little over a month…
A recent article in the New York Times features the National Renewable Energy Lab’s new, 220,000 sf, hyper-efficient office building in Golden, Colorado. This amazing building is, to date, the largest net-zero energy office building in the nation. There are an increasing number of examples of net-zero commercial buildings in the world, but none of this scale.
Today’s Banker & Tradesman features an article titled “LEED-ing By Example” that discusses the choices building owners are faced with when making sustainable choices in building design, and balancing costs when making decisions about LEED certification. Arrowstreet’s President, Jim Batchelor, is quoted in the article and an Arrowstreet project in Boston, Two Financial, is featured…
In a recent fly-by, an aerial photographer captured the view from above of Freeport Village Station in Maine. Arrowstreet’s use of white roofs on the project helps reduce air-conditioning demand for the building occupants by keeping the roof surface cool…