Three Exemplars

architnews1

November 17, 2006

Until recently, sustainable architecture had suffered a serious image problem. Overshadowed by Southwestern earthdomes, sod-roofed shacks and other granola-flavored efforts, and further hindered by the clumsy contemporary work of some of the movement’s leading protagonists, ecological architecture is still far away from being regarded as simply a sub-set (or super-set) of outstanding design. Elsewhere in the world, this perception is changing; for example, many of the works of Norman Foster and Renzo Piano are being admired as architectural achievements whose designs are inextricable from their environmental rewards. Here are a few buildings in New York that are laudable for integrating high performance and handsome design. CHL

architnews2

One Bryant Park

42nd street & 6th Ave

Client(s): Durst Organization and Bank of America

Architect: Cook & Fox Architects

Completion: 2008

Both of the leading protagonists in this project- the Durst Organization and Cook + Fox- have committed fully to the cause of advancing sustainability standards in architecture. Robert Fox (formerly of Fox & Fowle Architects) worked previously with Douglas Durst on 4 Times Square. With One Bryant Park, the team hopes to achieve what has not yet been done: a LEED Platinum rating for a commercial highrise. The crystalline tower’s faceted profile allows sunlight to reach the street and to penetrate the building from different angles. Its standout feature is a cogeneration plant, which will provide 67% of the building’s total power consumption. Taking into account the vast amount of electricity that is lost in the course of transmission, the on-site plant will be 300% more efficient than tapping into a traditional power grid. The building also has a graywater treatment plant and storage tanks for rainwater (no stormwater will be discharged into the city’s sewage system), which will be used to irrigate plants and flush toilets. The building also features waterless urinals, which will conserve about 3 million gallons of water per year. The building is the first in New York to fully feature underfloor access for air ventilation, electrical outlets and communication lines (the New York Times building also has this feature, but only for the newspaper’s floors).

The project has also converted its primary tenant, Bank of America, to sign on to the environmental cause. The ciompany is now launching an effort to green all of its bank branches, and has launched a program to offer cash rebates to their employees nationwide who purchase hybrid cars.

Stuyvesant Cove Environmental Center

23rd Street & the East River

Client: Community Environmental Center

Architect: Kiss + Cathcart, Architects

Completion: 2008

Kiss + Cathcart couldn’t design an eco-unfriendly building if they tried. Designer of the Stillwell Avenue Terminal train shed and consultant on the photovoltaic system for 4 Times Square, the firm is now working on several projects which all advance solutions for how to build sustainably in New York City, including a 12-floor residence on Pitt Street for Common Ground, and a maintenance facility for the NYC Department of Environmental Protection (a DDC project). In 2003, the architects built Solar 1, a temporary solar-powered classroom in Stuyvesant Cove Park administered by the non-profit Community Environmental Center (CEC) for the NYC Economic Development Corporation (EDC). Solar 1 will be replaced by Solar 2, a more elaborate and [permanent center which aims to be “the hub of environmental activity in the city.” The 8,000-square-foot building will be a teaching tool in itself: Perhaps the first building in the Northeast to achieve net zero water and energy impact, the building will demonstrate high-tech and traditional environmental strategies alike. An exterior vegetative screen provides passive cooling and shade. A sawtooth roof will sport PV panels and clerestory windows to allow natural daylighting. The lobby will house a living machine, which will collect and treat rainwater for toilets and irrigation. The project will also have composting toilets, whose byproduct will be used to fertilize the surrounding park. “There will be a lot of schoolkids, so the project has a lot of toilets,” conceded Cathcart.

Site 3

Battery Park City

Client: Albanese Organization

Architect: Pelli Clarke Pelli

Completion: 2008

Predating LEED by more than a decade, the environmentally minded design guidelines developed by the Battery Park City Authority (BPCA) have generated a collection of high-performance green buildings that has attracted eco-conscious inhabitants and developers alike. The drawback of the guidelines has been their stringent nature: Progressive projects such as the Solaire by Rafael Pelli for the Albanese Organization (completed in 2003) and their latest collaboration, the Verdesian (which finished last summer), as well as the Riverhouse (2007), developed by the Sheldrake Organization and designed by the Polshek Partnership (with interiors by David Rockwell), all have that distinct Battery Park City massing and material vocabulary. Pelli’s latest effort, commissioned by Albanese, is an as-yet unnamed project known for now as Site 3, just now breaking ground. Located in Battery Park City’s southernmost corner, the project was less constrained by its site and fell under different guidelines. The building features more glazing than the Solaris and Verdesian; Pelli specified the same high-performance glass that is used on Richard Meier’s Perry Street tower. with each successive building, Pelli and his client have managed to refine their approach, in this case, meeting the BPCA’s high standards for indoor air quality while saving the energy cost associated with the need to exhaust air.

Site 3, like the Solaris and Verdesian, is being built by Turner Construction, which is developing a niche as an expert green builder. Nationwide, it has no less than 23 LEED Platinum projects under its belt.


Posted on Friday, November 17th, 2006 at 3:38 pm | Tagged in S1 in the News, Solar 2 | posted by Dina

AddThis Social Bookmark Button   Print Print   Email Email