HIGH PERFORMANCE CASE STUDIES: 300-level
SESSION 24
DATE // START TIME // ROOM NUMBER:
Thursday, September 30, 2010 – 9:00am – Metro 2B
ABSTRACT:
Four unique case studies explore the challenges of managing the requirements of historic preservation and the sustainability goals of LEED:
- Lion House at the Bronx Zoo
- International Toy Center, New York
- McCarren Pool, Brooklyn
- J.W. McCormack Courthouse and Post Office Building, Boston
MODERATOR:
Gwen Kilvert, Assistant Director for Sustainability & Energy Management, The New School
SPEAKERS:
Sylvia Smith, Senior Partner, FXFOWLE Architects
David Burns, Partner, STUDIOS architecture
Scott Demel, Associate, Rogers Marvel Architects
Lisa Howe, Director of Preservation, Goody Clancy
DESCRIPTION:
The practice of historic preservation has been recognized for several decades in the United States as a notable contributor to the built environment and cultural heritage. Individual buildings or entire campuses and neighborhoods have received local or national landmark designation. Work at those properties is then gauged against the requirements of local and federal regulations and review, and the guidelines of the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Historic Preservation.
Over the past ten years, the LEED system has established itself as a primary reference metric for sustainable building design and construction practice. An owner’s independent decision, an organization’s attitude towards property management and operation, or a government policy can all be factors in determining the implementation of LEED, Do the requirements of historic preservation and the sustainability goals of LEED occur separately throughout a project, or are the benefits of one recognized and accommodated by the other?
This panel will present four projects notable for both preservation and sustainability goals. For each, the project parameters and strategies will be outlined, along with an overview of the LEED goals and the contribution of preservation work towards LEED points. The projects are:
1) Lion House at the Bronx Zoo
Originally designed by Heins & LaFarge in 1903, the Lion House is an historic landmark on Astor Court at the center of the Bronx Zoo. The rehabilitation and repurposing of the Beaux Arts building integrated the principles of sustainable design with landmark requirements. The Lion House was the first New York City landmark to receive LEED Gold Certification.
2) International Toy Center
In 2009, 200 Fifth Avenue was restored as a landmark one hundred years after its doors first opened. Facing New York’s historic Madison Square Park, this fourteen-story commercial building was underused and underappreciated for decades. Today, through a combination of vision and stewardship, 200 Fifth Avenue has once again taken its place among the great commercial buildings of New York City.
3) McCarren Pool and Bathhouse
Constructed during a WPA program and opened in 1936, the renovation by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation is currently in construction with a $50 million capital investment to rehabilitate this Brooklyn pool and adapt the original bathhouse into a year-round community facility. The building and site is a New York City Landmark and is targeted for LEED Silver certification, as required by Local Law 86, New York City’s Green Building Ordinance.
4) J.W. McCormack Courthouse and Post Office Building
The renovation of the historic 1930′s John W. McCormack Post Office and Courthouse at Post Office Square in Boston was completed in 2009, under the auspices of the GSA Public Buildings Service’s Design Excellence Program. The $136 million renovation re-established the elegance and functionality of the 600,000sf, 22-story building. A Local Landmark in the City of Boston and eligible for the National Register, the building is expected to achieve LEED Gold certification, exceeding the GSA requirement of LEED Silver.
