Photovoltaic Systems

One of Chicago’s biggest names in landscaping now lays claim to one of the greenest locations in the city.  Christy Webber Landscapes, along with the City of Chicago and GreenWorks, came together to develop an area in a struggling neighborhood.  After decades of abuse as an auto impound, landfill,
and iron-works, the polluted site had been declared a brownfield.  Subsequently,
in 2003 the City of Chicago proposed an initiative to reclaim the site, and a short three years later, the 12.5 acre piece of land was clean and fully operational.  Called "Rancho Verde," in honor of the mostly Hispanic workforce that makes up the landscaping industry, the former brownfield is now the headquarters for Christy Webber
Landscapes.  Rancho Verde features a one-story office building, warehouse, and a
shop-yard big enough to hold dozens of trucks that keep Chicago looking
healthy all year round. 

The building includes many familiar features in sustainable design
such as geothermal heating/cooling, solar panels to actively heat water
and air, and an off-site wind turbine to generate electricity.
Additional key elements include an intensive green roof system,
rainwater harvesting, and a top floor green house that helps to filter
air before it is directed to the office building.  Rainwater is
collected into giant cisterns that are used to irrigate site
vegetation, but also fill the water trucks that maintain lush streetscapes around the city.  Additional storm water is directed through bioswales,
and if necessary into a detention pond large enough to handle a 100
year storm event. 

The east/west building orientation takes advantage
of day lighting techniques with skylights, sun shades, and even
reflective materials on the ceiling to bounce light into work spaces.  Indoor materials are all low VOC, and 20% of the building material was retrieved
locally.  After completion, a total of 75% of construction waste was
diverted from landfills, an impressive statistic to say the least.   

Rancho
Verde has received universal praise and recognition of its bold and
progressive approach to sustainable development and community
improvement.  A few of the many accolades include the following: AIA
Chicago Special Recognition of Farr Architects, Chicago Building
Congress Merit Award, and most recently, the 2008 IDEAS Award
(Innovative Design in Engineering and Architecture with Structure
Steel) to Drucker Zajdel
Structural Engineers.  Having personally visited the site and building,
I am happy to say that it deserves all the respect it gets.

Located in a formerly desolate area of downtown St. Louis, the William A. Kerr Foundation building is a showcase for sustainable renovation strategies.  It started out in the late 1800′s as a bathhouse (it sits above a natural mineral spring), and thereafter as a paint warehouse — over time, it fell into disrepair.  The neighborhood was blighted when it was acquired by the owners, and they wanted to restore the building for the foundation’s offices and educational activities.  Subsequent to remediation and renovation, it was awarded 58 out of a possible 69 points by the USGBC and received LEED Platinum certification.  The William A. Kerr Foundation building has the following green features:

• The first wind turbine in the city of St. Louis
• 3.5 kW PVL system and solar hot water heating
• Raised access-plenum HVAC floor
• A green roof, bioswales, and rain barrels
• Bicycle racks and interior showers
• Low-flow plumbing fixtures
• Solatube Light tubes for natural lighting
• Rapidly renewable materials such as bamboo, cork, and Marmoleum

According to Vertegy, a full-service sustainable consultancy, the 4,800 square foot building was renovated at a cost of $1.5 million.  In addition, last May, ED+C published a case study of the building and described the building’s unique restoration.

Image credits: Trailnet (top); Urban Review STL (bottom three).

In Chicago, Illinois, The Residences at 900 have something unique to offer their residents, a lush green rooftop garden.  This environmentally friendly rooftop, designed by renowned landscape architect Douglas Hoerr, offers nearly fourteen thousand square feet of garden paradise. 

This beautiful roof improves the city air by converting the abundant CO2 back into oxygen and will also help to conserve energy by
insulating the building.  Storm water run-off will be reduced by
filtering through the soil, fueling the plants, and evaporating.  The
green roof will also decrease the ‘heat island’ effect, which is a term
used to describe the temperature spike in urban areas compared to
nearby rural areas due to environmental disturbances and pollution. 

The garden encompasses many gathering
areas for building residents to enjoy this unique outdoor oasis in the middle of the city.  The residences themselves are stunning,
offering one, two, and three bedroom floor plans ranging from about 1500
square feet to 5000 square feet. 

Prices are not shared on the website,
but one would not expect this luxury to come with a cheap price
tag.  But, if you’re going to pay a pretty price, you might as well
have a beautiful, eco-friendly rooftop garden to enjoy.  Visit The Residences’ website to see interior photos and floor plans.

This year, the Residences’ green roof also won a Green Roof Award of Excellence in the Intensive Residential Category.  Make sure to check out these other green roof articles in the archives:

[+] Green Roof Archives
[+] Intrigue of Green Roofs
[+] Costs and Benefits of Green Roofs