Bay Soundings l Building Better, Smarter

Building Better, SMARTER

By Mary Kelley Hoppe

It was just another meeting of “suits” — briefcase-toting, professionally-attired architects, planners and developers plus a smattering of elected officials, assembled for a handful of presentations by urban designers and visionaries from Portland, Vancouver and Manhattan.

Nothing particularly paradigm-shattering there. Except the setting was Tampa Bay, and the topic was “green” building, a term that conjures up visions of Birkenstock-clad, tree-hugging environmentalists.

It was a conversation whose time has come, said Tampa City Councilwoman Linda Saul-Sena, who attended “Why Green Building is Smart,” the Feb. 10 conference at St. Petersburg College’s new EpiCenter, hosted by the Gulf Coast Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council. “I came to the meeting because I wanted to learn more about what other communities are doing to encourage sustainable development,” she says. “I came away really stirred.”

Rendering of The Bank of America (BOA) Tower at One Bryant Park in Midtown Manhattan, slated to open in 2008, a project of the Durst Organization and BOA.

Saul-Sena wasn’t alone. As meetings go, it was a smash hit, equal parts inspiration and practical application, evidence that green building is anything but untested – it’s proven, profitable and gaining momentum.

Manhattan architect Rick Cook was one of the showstoppers. Cook, a partner at Cook+Fox Architects of New York, led the design team for One Bryant Park, Bank of America’s new $1-billion office tower in midtown Manhattan, slated to open in 2008. One Bryant Park is the first high-rise in the world to seek the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Platinum designation, and likely will reshape conventional thinking about building design and urban redevelopment.

In a word, One Bryant Park is breathtaking – a crystalline spire that will rise 945 feet (55 stories) out of the ground and encompass 2.1 million square feet. Inspired by New York’s famed Crystal Palace, the first light metal frame building in America erected in Bryant Park in 1853, its design honors history while embracing a bold architectural future as stunning as it is smart.

The faceted crystal design of the tower features unique sculptural surfaces with crisp folds and precise vertical lines that will be animated by the movement of the sun and the moon. Higher ceilings and translucent insulating glass in floor-to-ceiling windows will permit maximum daylight in interior spaces, optimal views and energy efficiency. Advanced double-wall technology on the south-facing turret will provide remarkable views in and out of the building while dissipating the sun’s heat.

A gray-water system will capture and reuse all rainwater and wastewater, saving millions of gallons of water a year, while planted roofs will reduce the urban heat island effect. A state-of-the-art co-generation facility on site will provide a clean, efficient power source for the building’s energy needs. OBP also incorporates a critical subway connector for NYC’s 1.4 billion mass-transit riders. Not a single parking space is planned for the building.

By the numbers, OBP is designed to slash both energy consumption and potable water consumption by 50%, eliminate 100% of stormwater runoff, utilize 50% recycled material in construction, and obtain at least half of the skyscraper’s building materials from within 500 miles of the city.

Occupants also can expect to breathe easier – OBP will be outfitted with air filters that remove 95% of particulate matter, plus ozone and volatile organic compounds, resulting in air quality comparable to that of an operating room, Cook says. That’s compared to about 35% particulate filtration for a conventional new building in the city.

Demolition crews working to raze the two-city-block site were able to recycle 85% of the de-construction material. Cook cites that as just one example of how a commitment to green building can spark better and profitable new business enterprises. Contractors grumbled at first when they were asked to sort and separate the material, he says, but figured out how to sell the material. “What they generally say now is that demolition doesn’t cost any more at a “green” site and, moving forward, it could become a profit center.” Click here for Reflections on a Green Building

Bank of America’s real estate point man on OBP, John Saclarides, a native of Tarpon Springs now based in Charlotte, is a by-the-numbers guy who’s convinced green building makes sense. “It’s the right thing to do for our associates,” according to Saclarides, who says BOA views green building as a critical edge in attracting and retaining a healthy, productive workforce.

“But not all aspects of green building translate into the health and productivity of an associate,” he points out. “If we would have stopped at those factors, we never would have made it to the platinum level.”

“We also believe it’s the right thing to do for the planet,” Saclarides says. “Major corporations should be taking a leadership position – if we can do it, we should. What ends up happening is it forces efficiency, everyone starts to sharpen their pencils, and the costs are driven down for the next person moving forward.”

Tale of Two Cities: Portland & Vancouver

Portland and Vancouver are trailblazers in sustainable redevelopment. Rob Bennett, an architect of Portland’s sustainability initiative, now a project manager with Vancouver’s Sustainability Group, shared stories from both urban centers where former brownfield sites in the heart of the cities are being transformed into vibrant downtown residential districts.

In Portland’s South Waterfront, a former shipping and steelyard is gaining a new lease on life as a high-density residential community with 3000 housing units on 140 acres. Sustainable features – addressing stormwater management, water and energy conservation, transportation, even affordable housing — were integrated into the design from the start.

All buildings within South Waterfront will be LEED-certified, including an Oregon Health Sciences University (OHSU) facility that is striving for LEED Platinum certification. The building will generate its own power, treat its own waste and harvest rainwater for reuse on site.

Perhaps the most innovative element of South Waterfront is its integration of stormwater management and habitat. A 100-foot-deep, 1.2-mile-long greenway winds along the waterfront mimicking historic natural conditions. It features enhanced riparian habitat for salmon spawning and native vegetation in a major bio-swale and sloping planted shoreline that naturally detains and treats stormwater. In South Waterfront’s first phase, the county expects to save millions of dollars in stormwater piping. The development also emphasizes transportation alternatives, including an extension of the city’s streetcar system and a tram that will shuttle residents uphill to OHSU’s Marquam Hill campus, one of the city’s largest employers.

Three hundred miles north, in Vancouver, BC — a scant 50 square miles in size compared to Portland’s 150-square-mile footprint — construction is underway on Southeast False Creek, an 80-acre waterfront neighborhood that will house 12,000 to 15,000 residents by 2018. False Creek includes a mix of affordable and market-rate housing, a community center, elementary school, parks and waterfront esplanade. The project is designed to be a model for sustainable urban redevelopment.

The first phase of Southeast False Creek is being readied for the 2010 Winter Olympics. The Olympic Village will house more than 3000 athletes and officials before becoming False Creek’s first completed neighborhood.

Bennett says there are cogent lessons from both places. “Fundamentally, sustainability is about priorities and values,” he says. “Each city has focused on a different element of sustainability – Portland on ecological enhancement and protection, and Vancouver on the creation of a complete community that balances livability and social sustainability. Both projects have sought out creative solutions to stormwater management.”

Equally important, notes Bennett, is the fact that both projects are profitable real estate ventures with public subsidies comparable to mainstream projects of similar scope. “We’re not talking bells and whistles here, we’re talking smart, integrated design that saves money and enhances environmental functionality,” Bennett says.

“We’re asking more from our infrastructure and buildings – pure and simple.”

The larger message was not lost on the audience – if Bank of America can do it in Manhattan, and Portland and Vancouver can turn waterfront brownfields into trendy and profitable urban “green” developments, surely it can be done in Tampa Bay. “Everyone who’s thinking is going to be doing it,” says St. Petersburg architect John Toppe, president of the Green Building Council’s Gulf Coast Chapter.

Green Building Comes of Age

Toppe is a believer whose conversion came late in the game. A call from a friend in 2001 led to a meeting on green building that first sparked his interest. “It kind of led me to the realization that we as a society can’t go on like this,” he says. “As architects and engineers we have a huge stake in what our cities and communities will become.”

Cook’s “ah-ha” moment came 20 years into a successful career. On a trip to Phnom Pen in Cambodia, where he and his wife traveled to adopt twin boys, he was struck by a society modeling itself on wasteful Western practices. “In the back of my mind, I pictured this bucolic developing country with rice paddies,” says Cook.

What he saw shocked him – “choking congestion, bootleg gasoline being sold out of little Pepsi bottles to fill up mopeds, air pollution from two-stroke vehicles… things that bring to mind the rapid urbanization of places like China.”

“They are patterning themselves after our example,” says Cook, who notes that the U.S. has less than 5% of the world’s population but consumes 25% of its resources. “If the developing world consumes at the rates the U.S. has set, it’s completely unsustainable. We have no choice, we must set a different standard.”

As an organized movement, green building is relatively new. The U.S. Green Building Council was formed in 1993; the Gulf Coast chapter is just two years old. The ideas upon which the modern green building movement are predicated, however, are anything but new.

Long before the word “sustainability” came into vogue, ancient Greek and Roman builders and architects of the Renaissance and Enlightment, were applying these principles. Sustainable development as we know it today merely continues an ageless architectural tradition based on working with rather than against or apart from the environment. Thus, it becomes not only the ethical and, in the long run, most economical thing to do, it’s also the logical choice for communities seeking better performing, more attractive places to live and work.

Of all the environmental movements in the U.S., according to University of Florida engineering professor Charles Kibert, green building has been one of the most successful. Before the U.S. Green Building Council ever released the first green building standard, they brought everyone to the table to hammer out the guidelines, he says. The result was nearly automatic buy-in.

But the definitions and assessment tools are still evolving and somewhat arbitrary, cautions Kibert, who directs the university’s Powell Center for Construction and Environment. “We don’t know, for example, what a “green” material really is,” he says. “There needs to be a lot more rigor in the system.”

Kibert, an international expert on green building, was the force behind the “greening” of UF. The university has more LEED-certified buildings in the pipeline than any other university in the country – 15 underway or completed, including the 47,000-square-foot Rinker Hall, winner of the American Institute of Architects Green Projects Award in 2005.

Lessons from Sarasota

Turns out Tampa Bay leaders need not look far for inspiration. Sarasota County is sold on green building and “walking the talk,” says Sarasota County Commissioner Shannon Staub, a presenter at the conference. All county buildings must be LEED certified. Furthermore, the county requires its building inspectors and plan examiners to become certified in green building standards – and boosts their base pay by $500 to $1000 for successfully completing standard or LEED professional coursework.

“We want to make green building almost like the Good Housekeeping seal of approval,” says Staub, a Republican and board member of Florida Green Building Coalition. Interest in green building started in 2002 after a drought that prompted discussions about the need for a more environmentally progressive landscaping ordinance. Click here for Lakewood Ranch Goes Green

“Green building kind of evolved out of that, and now it’s starting to roll downhill and gain momentum,” Staub says. Now, when developers come before the county commission for a zoning density change, invariably one of the first questions asked is “Are you going to build green?”

The county is promoting green building with a number of incentives including fast-track permitting, according to county building official Paul Radauskas. Homebuilders that want to build “green” get their plans reviewed in two days compared to the standard two- to four-week turnaround; home inspections for green builders also are fast-tracked.

“Basically, they go to the top of the pile,” says Radauskas. “You’re probably saving four to five weeks of time overall, so that’s probably worth a couple thousand dollars.” What’s more, once the house is certified, the county refunds $1000 in builder permit fees, an incentive patterned after a similar “carrot” offered by the city of Gainesville.

Radauskas says the development community is embracing the concept. A recent survey by the American Institute of Architects indicates that homebuyers would be willing to spend an additional $4000 to $5000 for a house that uses less energy and protects the environment. Couple that with the fact that the cost to build green – typically a premium of $2000 or less for a 2,500-square-foot home, Radauskas estimates – continues to go down.

So convinced is Radauskas of the economics of green building that he is eager to offer training for developers on how to “Build Green and Profit.”

Lessons for Tampa Bay

“The mind set of the whole community is changing,” says Toppe, who hopes Tampa Bay will become the next pacesetter. “Ultimately we want to see smart, sustainable building become the norm.”

“The timing couldn’t be more perfect for Pinellas County,” says Pinellas County Commissioner Susan Latvala, who attended the conference. “We’re done with development. We can now do it better (with redevelopment) than it was done before.”

Latvala has agreed to lead a “green ribbon” committee that will evaluate opportunities for policy and ordinance changes.

Across the bay in Tampa, Mayor Pam Iorio has expressed similar support for adopting sustainable building practices and policies, directing her chief of staff to assemble the appropriate technical team to evaluate recommendations from a local green ribbon coalition.

“It’s an issue whose time has come – passed, actually,” says Latvala. “But we’re getting there, better late than never.”

What is LEED?

LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, a voluntary rating standard that defines “green building” by establishing performance benchmarks in five key areas: siting, materials usage, water usage, energy efficiency and indoor environmental quality. Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, established in 1993, LEED addresses both commercial and residential markets with performance standards for new buildings, existing buildings, homes and neighborhoods. LEED certification validates to occupants and the community that a building has met certain criteria for sustainability. There are four progressive levels of LEED certification – Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum – based on the number of points awarded to a project. LEED accreditation also is available to building industry practitioners with expertise in sustainable design. Learn more at www.usgbc.org/leed.

Did you know?

Buildings in the U.S. account for:

36% of energy use
30% of greenhouse gas emissions
30% of raw materials use
30% of waste output
12% of potable water use
Source: USGBC

Why Build Green?

Given the proven economic benefits and a minimal upfront investment – estimated at 0 to 2% of construction cost and dropping — experts ask, why not? Green buildings have lower operating costs, higher value per square foot, lease faster at higher rates, and have a smaller environmental footprint. Proponents tout green-building’s “triple bottom line,” producing tangible environmental, economic and health/workforce productivity returns that typically far outweigh any incremental cost increases in the construction phase. Learn more at www.usgbc.org.

Don’t Miss: Brad Pitt’s Architectural Digest

Brad Pitt is bringing his love of architecture to the public – public television that is. Pitt will narrate “Design: e2,” a six-part series about environmentally friendly architecture, which is slated to air in June on PBS. “His involvement will allow us to educate more viewers than we had ever hoped for about the importance of green building,” executive producer Karena Albers said in a statement. View a trailer online at www.design-e2.com.

Coming Up:

April 28, 3 to 5 p.m. at Brooker Creek Preserve: “Developing a Winning Edge.” Martin Melaver, CEO of a “green” real-estate company in Savannah share his thoughts on how developers, realtors and other businesses can have a profound, positive impact on their communities – and still turn a healthy profit. Call 727-453-6800 to register.

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