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The American Institute of Architects Announces the 2006 Top Ten Green Projects
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For Immediate Release |
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Washington, D.C., April 19,
2006 — In recognition of Earth Day 2006, The American Institute of
Architects (AIA) and its Committee on the Environment (COTE) have
selected the top ten examples of sustainable architecture and green
design solutions that protect and enhance the environment. The
projects will be honored on May 3 during a presentation at the
National Building Museum in Washington and again in June at the AIA
2006 National Convention and Design Exposition in Los
Angeles.
The 2006 COTE Top Ten Green Projects address environmental
conservation and the notion of sustainable development with designs
that integrate architecture, technology, and natural systems. They
make a positive contribution to their community, improve comfort
for building occupants, and reduce environmental impacts through
strategies such as: reuse of existing structures, connection to
transit systems, low-impact site development, energy and water
conservation, use of sustainable or renewable construction
materials, and design that improves indoor air quality.
The jury selected projects that cover a broad spectrum of project
types. Recipients include civic, office, residential, academic, and
institutional. The panel of jurors included: Kevin Burke, AIA,
William McDonough + Partners, Charlottesville Va.; David Miller,
FAIA, Miller Hull Architects, Seattle; Kath Williams, PhD, Kath
Williams + Associates, Bozeman Mont.; Kevin Hydes, PE, Stantec
Consulting Ltd., Montreal; RK Stewart, FAIA, Gensler, San
Francisco; and Catriona Campbell Winter, The Clark Construction
Group, Bethesda Md.
Jury members said that they wanted to pick a range of project and
building types. The application forms gave them 10 metrics on each
project for a quick reading on performance, however the jury was
very focused on the architectural and design aspects of each
project as well. According to Henry Siegel, FAIA, a member of the
COTE national advisory group, “The projects chosen in the Top
Ten for 2006 included striking examples of integrated thinking,
design excellence, strong energy performance, and mindfulness of
water, site, and community matters. The Top Ten Measures, the
framework for this program, make up a robust definition of
sustainable design, and we're proud that this year's winners again
live up to those goals.”
The 2006 Top Ten Green Projects (listed in alphabetical
order):
Ballard Library and Neighborhood Service Center in
Seattle
Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, Seattle
This project, the first major building designed within the new
Ballard Municipal Master Plan Zone, consists of the 15,000
square-foot Ballard Library, a 3,600 square-foot neighborhood
service center and 18,000 square-feet of below grade parking.
Ballard is evolving to be one of Seattle’s most popular
neighborhoods. The district is rapidly becoming the civic core of
the neighborhood, easily accessible for pedestrians, by bicycles,
and public transit. A pedestrian zoning overlay was recently
adopted to promote development of this nature. The site, located in
an urban context, was redeveloped for this project. The challenge
was to develop the site in a restorative manner. Formerly home to a
bank and a parking lot, hardscape comprised 100% of the lot
coverage. Today, combined with the green roof and planters at the
building perimeter, the hardscape has been reduced to 20% of the
lot coverage.
Jury Comments:“One of the things we were looking for was
projects that are truly integrated. The roof is the real expression
of this building: it vents, it’s a green roof, there are
photovoltaics there; it’s a bit move that does many things at
once. Beautiful buildings will be preserved, and this is very much
part of sustainability. This will be a 100-year building because
people will want to save it. Everyone would want that library in
their neighborhood. This is the kind of building that can be a
catalyst for change—pushing individual buildings as well as
neighborhoods to become more sustainable.”
Benjamin Franklin Elementary School in Kirkland,
Wash.
Mahlum Architects, Seattle
Learning is about creating connections. That’s one reason why
the new 56,000-square-foot Benjamin Franklin Elementary School was
designed to connect students directly with the environment in which
they live. The new public school replaces an existing facility on a
narrow 10-acre site that has a rich natural setting. Inside, the
school’s 450 students in grades K-6 are distributed within
small learning communities formed by clusters of four naturally
ventilated and day-lit classrooms around a multi-purpose activity
area. Stacked within two-story wings that extend towards the woods,
these communities are integrally linked with views and access to
nature beyond.
Jury Comments: “We thought this building was beautifully
sited. The plan and section seemed very coherent; there is an
overall consistency here. There are a lot of teaching opportunities
here for the kids, parents, and the public, which is important.
This is a regional building. It uses the forest as a sun-shading
device. Natural light is precious in the northwest and this
building reaches up to the light. The trees protect the glazing,
and those large windows allow a strong connection to the
outdoors.”
Corporate Headquarters for Alberici in Overland,
Mo.
Mackey Mitchell Associates, St. Louis
This project is an adaptive reuse of an existing manufacturing
plant into a corporate headquarters for one of St. Louis’
oldest and largest construction companies. Requirements included an
open office environment, structured parking, training rooms,
exercise facilities and dining facilities. When company growth led
to the decision to move, the company CEO “wanted to be in a
place that fosters teamwork and creativity.” The client wanted
to lead by example, transform the design and construction market
place and set a goal of Platinum level LEED certification,
reminding all of “the future generations who will someday work
in this building.”
Jury Comments:“This is a major transformation project;
they reused a giant old warehouse. There seemed to be strong
corporate commitment and the result is a project that really came
at this from all directions (and it’s the highest rated LEED
building in the world). You can see that this project will evolve
over time. They inserted a new structure within the shell, adding
only minimally where they needed it. This is a highly replicable
solution. They installed an old wind generator on site and that
alone provides 20 percent of the facility’s electrical needs
annually.”
Philadelphia Forensic Science Center in
Philadelphia
Croxton Collaborative Architects, New York City & Cecil Baker
Associates, Philadelphia
The new Forensic Science Center for the Philadelphia Police
Department is both a state-of-the-art forensics laboratory
facility, as well as a demonstration project for
environmental/sustainable design-intended as a model for future
projects undertaken by the Capitol Program Office of Philadelphia.
The rigorous program includes a firearms unit, with a shooting
range for ballistics analysis; crime scene unit for 24 hours/day
crime scene evidence gathering; chemistry laboratories for drug
analysis; criminalistics and DNA laboratories for hair/fiber/blood
analysis. The building is a 1929 concrete frame, brick infill
building and the lab is in a former K-12 school building on a site
of which had been abandoned for many years. Located in an
under-served neighborhood of north Philadelphia with higher crime
rates, lower income levels and fewer services, the new Forensic
Science Center has helped to breathe new life and a better sense of
security into an entire neighborhood.
Jury Comments: “This is an adaptive reuse project and lab
building that found a way to get really outstanding metrics and
performance and this was a low-bid public project with no extra
money for green strategies. They did some simple, clever things:
the tapered ceiling, putting all the mechanical systems in the
middle of the building. This was one of the best building sections
we saw, and we loved the hand drawn quality of it.”
Regional Animal Campus in Las Vegas
Tate Snyder Kimsey Architects, Henderson, Nev.
The Regional Animal Campus for the Las Vegas Valley is intended to
serve the animal sheltering and adoption needs for the cities of
Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, and surrounding Clark County, Nevada.
Driven by a need to expand its operations, The Animal Foundation
plans to create a regional animal campus. The goals for the
project’s first phase, the dog adoption park, are to create a
memorable and dignified way of presenting animals to the adopting
public and to use sustainable strategies in the design of this
complex, with the intention of achieving LEED platinum
certification. A healthy, pleasant and comfortable environment is
important to visitor attitudes about adoption and the mood and
health of sheltered animals. The costs of maintaining this
environment, however, are exceptionally high and directly impact
the scale of the Animal Foundation’s operations. The goal of
the design team was to minimize facility costs without affecting
the quality of the adoption experience. Given southern
Nevada’s climate, reducing the dog bungalows’ cooling
load and water use were identified as the two major areas of focus
for facility efficiency.
Jury Comments: “This is in a tough climate and the project
uses natural ventilation. The building type is dense and presents
mechanic problems. They really simplified the building and did it
really well. It’s a radically different solution, and that is
what we love about it. This kind of program is usually relegated to
strip mall site and status. They really elevated the project type
and you can envision this place really attracting
people.”
Renovation of the Motherhouse in Monroe,
Mich.
Susan Maxman & Partners, Philadelphia
When the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (SSIHM),
recognized that their order was diminishing, they embarked on a
collaborative, long-range planning process to determine the best
way to achieve an ecologically sustainable 21st century community
on their 280-acre site in southern Michigan.
Many of the structures on their property were built in the
1930’s and are historically significant. The design team met
the challenge by designing 380,000 square feet of construction that
utilized the existing structures to best meet the very specific
housing, long term care and spiritual needs, while achieving
sustainable and preservation goals. The team also succeeded in
making this austere former convent into a warm and friendly home,
with a strong focus on nature and the surrounding site. The Sisters
wanted to leave a legacy to future generations with this project.
One of the missions of their order is to respect the Earth and
promote eco-justice, so the hope was to create a community that
would exemplify these ideals. Since the SSIHM congregation is known
for its teaching excellence, the Sisters saw this project as an
opportunity to teach the public about important environmental
issues.
Jury Comments: “The sisters’ comment that
sustainability is a moral mandate was compelling. And here they
showed how to be smart with reuse. There is also a strong
connection to the neighborhood and a reconstructed wetland, showing
how the building engaged in its site and place. There’s a real
sensitivity to aging occupants and how they would use the
building.”
School of Nursing & Student Community Center in
Houston
BNIM Architects, Kansas City, Mo. & Lake/Flato Architects, San
Antonio
The School of Nursing design team became stewards of the vision
established by University leadership for a nursing school and
student community center designed to be state-of-the-art for
learning, research, student service and workplace. The resulting
building reduces the use of energy, polluting chemicals, cleaning
agents, potable water and other resources. The School of Nursing
and Student Community Center at The University of Texas Health
Science Center at Houston establishes benchmarks for healthy
buildings; for daylight; for visual acuity and cognitive learning;
and for flexibility, durability and reduced operating costs. The
design is straightforward and transparent. In plan and section,
distinct zones organize building functions, to maximize exposure to
the adjacent park, views and daylight.
Jury Comments: “This was a programmatically complex
project on a difficult and dense site. They had to combine a lot of
human and high tech functions. I like that they set this building
up to get greener; there is a framework for photovoltaics when they
can afford it. I think we should all be thinking about designing
buildings that can adapt over time.”
Solar Umbrella House in Venice, Calif.
Pugh + Scarpa, Santa Monica, Calif.
Inspired by Paul Rudolph's Umbrella House of 1953, the Solar
Umbrella provides a contemporary reinvention of the solar canopy.
The new design reorganizes the residence towards the south,
optimizing exposure to energy rich southern California sunlight.
Conceived as a solar canopy, photovoltaic panels not only protect
the body of the building from thermal heat gain, but also provide
the residence with 95% of its electricity. Innovative materials and
strategies throughout contribute to both the sustainability and
livability of the home, which flows seamlessly from indoors to out.
The Solar Umbrella Residence is a bold and sophisticated model for
responsible living in the 21st century, characterized by its
integration of sustainability with a striking yet refined
avant-garde aesthetic.
Jury Comments: “The form is elegant and beautiful and
comes from an environmental solution. This is a billboard to the
neighborhood that you can do photovoltaics in this way. They are an
umbrella for outdoor living. And this project actually reused an
existing cottage on a dense urban site.”
Westcave Preserve Environmental Learning Center in Travis
County, Texas
Jackson & McElhaney Architects, Austin, Texas
A 30-acre nature preserve and canyon 28 miles northwest of Austin,
Texas needed to expand its community programs by building a new
“wilderness classroom” and provide a meeting place for
walking tours to a nearby waterfall and “live” grotto
cave. The goal of the two agencies who partnered for the project
was to foster the respect and stewardship of the natural
environment, provide environmental education, and preserve this
sanctuary into the future. The design of the structure was
conceived as a 3 dimensional textbook. The architecture and design
elements work to mimic or model the surrounding natural
systems.
Jury Comments: “This project is truly of its place. They
looked at building as a teaching tool. The east and west faces are
the long faces of this building… the eaves are a regional
vernacular. There is pocket parking and a wooded site. The glass is
high and well protected. They were careful to preserve the
vegetation. They paid close attention to issues of thermal
mass.”
World Birding Center, Mission, Texas
Lake/Flato Architects, San Antonio, Texas
The Lower Rio Grande Valley is one of the richest bird habitats in
the world, however only 5% of the native habitat currently remains.
On the major migratory pathway for most North American species, the
area has become a major destination for nature enthusiasts. The new
World Birding Center, built at the Bentsen–Rio Grande Valley
State Park for Texas Parks & Wildlife, creates a gateway
between the disturbed agricultural land and a 1700-acre native
habitat preserve. The design approach was to do more with less. The
architecture learned from the regional vernacular, responded to the
harsh climate, and minimized disturbance of existing habitat.
Jury Comments: “It caters carefully to the type of
occupant, a place for quiet observation, it was a nice, delicate
intervention on its site. They brought the programmed square
footage down from 20,000 to 13,000. This is a good example of
right-sizing, an approach that is often overlooked. This project
also follows the big moves: reduce, reuse, recycle. Reducing square
footage is the biggest move you can make.”
About the AIA Committee on the Environment Top Ten Green
Awards
The AIA’s Committee on the Environment represents more than
7,600 AIA members committed to making sustainable or
“green” design integral to the practice of architecture.
The AIA/COTE Top Ten Green Project Awards initiative was developed
by the AIA in partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy and
BuildingGreen.com, publishers of Environmental Building News
magazine. In 2003 The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's ENERGY
STAR® Program joined as an additional sponsor.
About The American Institute of Architects
Since 1857, the AIA has represented the professional interests of
America's architects. As AIA members, more than 75,000 licensed
architects, allied partners and emerging professionals express
their commitment to excellence in design and livability in our
nation's buildings and cities. Members adhere to a code of ethics
and professional conduct that assures the client, the public, and
colleagues of an AIA-member architect's dedication to the highest
standards in professional practice.
Note to editors: For additional information or
high-resolution images of the Top Ten Green Projects contact Cara
Battaglini in the AIA’s media relations office, (202)
626-7463, email: carab@aia.org. Additional project images,
description and metrics, and data sets will be available at
www.aiatopten.org, along with links to winners from previous
years.
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