"Where else in the United States does this exist?" asked Paul Chapel, a principal with BOKA Powell Architects, in Dallas. "A mile of granite carpet woven by hand. It's a work of art."
"Those beautiful granite pavers, set so that they look like the back of a rattlesnake, are inspired, a hallmark of a mixed transit and pedestrian mall designed by Henry Cobb, a partner of I.M. Pei, whose name was dropped liberally during the presentation."
"Honor the original design and its civic significance to Denver," ...that includes uncluttering the sidewalks; old pictures of the mall show understated planters and other accessories. "Those Teletubby planters and wastebaskets have to go," said Brown of the numerous newly (and brightly) painted planters and wastebaskets.
"Lend Lease, a development company with its U.S. headquarters in Denver, got zoning approval for the project last week. The company anticipates its conceptual plans for Horizon Uptown will be approved in the next three months.
All commercial buildings in the project must meet the LEED Gold standard. Homes will be built to either Colorado Built Green standards or those established by the U.S. Green Building Council.
Home-management systems will measure consumption of water and energy. A website, also known as a community portal, will allow residents to check consumption, said Greg Ochis, Horizon's project manager.
Lend Lease also has been talking with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory about the possibility of equipping each home at Horizon, as well as its development at the former Lowry Bombing Range, with electric cars."
The version 3.0 release of LEED standards is being released for public comment over the next month, lots of good articles covering the updates at the locations below. Also check out the webinar on Wednesday May 21st.
"Denver Public Works and our partners, AR7 Architects and Haselden Construction LLC, prioritized environmental stewardship as an integral part of the design and construction process of the Justice Center Post Office/Parking Garage," said City Engineer Lesley Thomas. "Our ultimate goal is to ensure that all three of the structures on the Justice Center campus are appealing, engaging, functional and sustainable."
With the 1 year anniversary of Greensburg, Kansas being leveled by a EF5 tornado and the recent string of deaths and destruction due to tornadoes, I though I would ask the question "How do you best design for a tornado"? Better yet, how do you rebuild a community in the best sustainable way to survive a tornado and not have to rebuild, thus saving materials and energy.
In the Midwest plains, one of the main reasons that tornadoes form and continue a path of destruction, is the lack of natural features dispersing the wind forces. One idea that was raised in a recent Discovery channel program "Blown Away : Greensburg, Kansas" was to plant a forest ring of trees around the town. This was shown in models to mitigate the overall power of the tornado and as long as the correct trees and spacing are used this seems to be a good plan, however, how long until the groves of trees are tornado-protecting size?
To rebuild the homes that are more tornado resistant, what design techniques and materials should be employed? Let's start from the bottom; the foundation is an important aspect of many homes and unfortunately the trailer homes and others that rest on blocks or a concrete slab are the most at risk of destruction. In the Midwest, many new homes don't have basements anymore and storm cellars are becoming rare. So why not build a strong foundation that will act as an secure anchoring system for the house and give it's inhabitant's safe shelter? The reasons I found were flooding due to high water table, stresses and stains due to freezing in the winter, and a solid bedrock under site surface. Fair enough, if these factors are the case, then one must think about building a strong lower level that attaches firmly to the ground slab.
The latest material I am beginning to see in pre-fab construction and in the rebuilding efforts of the city of Greensburg is ECO-Block. ECO-Block is simpler and easier to install than wood-frame methods — and, even other ICF systems. It's faster, taking less time with fewer people. And it’s more sustainable, because ECO-Block buildings are vastly more energy-efficient. Stronger. Quieter. Resistant to fire, moisture, mold and the elements. Debris driven by high winds presents the greatest hazard to homeowners and their property during tornadoes and hurricanes. Recent laboratory testing at Texas Tech University (see video below) compared the impact resistance of residential concrete wall construction to conventionally framed walls. Only concrete wall systems, such as ICFs and concrete masonry, successfully demonstrated the strength and mass to resist the impact of wind-driven debris. The wood-frame walls failed to stop the penetration of airborne hazards. These insulated concrete forms can be filled with recycled fly-ash concrete to make the wall even "greener". Another advantage to ICFs is that they can be cut into radius rounded walls for greater aerodynamics if wanted.
After the walls are up, impact-resistant window systems, when properly installed, have a much better chance of surviving a major windstorm. Alternatively, impact-resistant shutters that close over window openings prevent flying debris from breaking windowpanes. Strengthen door frames, hinges, latches, and dead-bolt locks should be strong enough to resist high wind pressures. Double doors such as French doors need special attention because of the stress on the center latch. Door frames must be securely anchored to house frames. Another idea is to reduce the design of adornments on the exterior that could become damaging projectiles. Hip roofs without gables and with minimal eaves have proven to be the best roof design to combat high winds in hurricane and tornadic areas especially if the slope of the roof from horizontal is 35 degrees or greater (to reduce/eliminate the airfoil effect of extreme high winds that blow over the roof). Also, steep angled roofs seem to handle winds better than a standard gabled roof. Most importantly, the roof must be securely tied into the wall structure with metal roof tie fastener systems and the soffit and eave area should have reinforced connections. A home has to be well-connected in order to distribute the forces caused by wind pressure, which reduces the chance it will come apart or collapse.
On the eve of its fifth anniversary, 4240 Architecture, Inc., an award-winning architecture, interior and urban planning firm with studios in Chicago and Denver, has promoted six Senior Associates to Associate Principals.
"This is the next generation of leadership for our fast-growing firm, which does site-specific design work on a global scale," explained Peter H. Dominick, Jr., FAIA and 4240 Architecture President. "While each individual is a star in his or her own right, the promotions are not about individuals, but about creating a great team that will dovetail with our marketing and business strategies -- each member contributing the right mix of innovation, creativity, and leadership as we move into the future."
4240 Architecture Inc. is an award-winning national design firm doing site-specific work on a global scale. Based in Denver and Chicago, we offer services in architecture, planning and design, renovation and adaptive re-use, interior and landscape design. We are committed to a collaborative design process that intimately involves our clients, and that involves deep research on each project to help us understand its needs and goals. We are known for our leadership, innovation and creativity, technical expertise, and our management process. · A proven track record of delivering complex projects on time and on budget, facilitating a smooth and timely process when multiple approval parties are involved; · The ability to integrate the cultural, environmental, and lifestyle character of the locale; · Coordination of the smallest details for staging, phasing and meeting design and community guidelines needs; · A strong portfolio of preservation and urban re-use and infill; · The ability to reveal new possibilities, and be strong players in developing project marketability through better design; · And a familiarity and working knowledge of unique environmental requirements such as seasonal construction microclimate constraints, and the natural forces of sun, sea, snow and wind.
4240 Architecture, Inc., is an industry leader in the design of buildings that exceed expectations in terms of economics, social equity, and environmental sustainability. We excel at identifying strategies that work together in a whole-building approach to achieve more than any one system alone – the building struggles less to perform better. The firm is a member of the U.S. Green Building Council, and has nine LEED™ Accredited Professionals on staff. LEED™ Accredited Professionals go through rigorous training to reach an advanced understanding of design strategies that enhance performance in every phase of a project, from initial site selection and orientation to programming, massing, systems design, materials selection, construction, close-out and follow-up.
Thursday, May 15th 4 - 5:30pm at the Oxford Hotel, Theatre Room, $10 at the door, hors d'oeuvres and drinks will be served with a cash bar for the post meeting happy hour in the Cruise Room. See this link for agenda and RSVP info.
Back in early March, Danish wind energy leader, Vestas Wind Systems quietly opened their first US based wind-blade manufacturing facility in Windsor, Colorado. According to their 2008 first quarter financial report, they plan on locating another facility in Colorado, this time it will be the largest wind turbine tower assembly plant. The $245 million (USD) facility, which is to be fully operational in mid-2010, will be able to produce 900 towers annually. The location has yet to be determined, but Windsor, Loveland and Pueblo are the three locations in the running. A very positive job development for Coloradoans, thanks to GovernorRitter's efforts in attracting alternative/clean energy companies to Colorado.
"Where else in the United States does this exist?" asked Paul Chapel, a principal with BOKA Powell Architects, in Dallas. "A mile of granite carpet woven by hand. It's a work of art." 
architecture denver
green denver
