RKT&B needed to meet the standards of three stakeholders in order to ensure success in the project. The FDNY required decreased response time and operational efficiency, while the DDC sought a space that would become a model for all new firehouses built in New York City. Local residents wanted a civic building with an unmistakeable presence. From the initial renderings, it appears that RKT&B has managed to successfully incorporate all three of these requirements into its design program.

Although the project is not seeking a LEED rating, green features do abound, ranging from dual-flush toilets and low-flow water fixtures to a water drain heat recovery system. Occupancy sensors and an 85 percent-efficient, conventional single boiler will contribute to maximize the firehouse’s energy efficiency. Bamboo flooring will be installed throughout the project’s interiors, and various recycled and reclaimed materials are being used for its structural components. The roof will also be EnergyStar-rated and green standard low-VOC paints, adhesives, and sealants will boost indoor air quality.

We often emphasize how critical it is for architectural design excellence to intersect with performance-driven sustainable buildings, so it’s encouraging to see a high-profile piece of green architecture being used as a template for future Gotham firehouses.

• RKT&B Begins Construction (NYREJ)

• Engine Company 201 (RKT&B)

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USGBC-NY will unveil the winners next Wednesday, July 30, at an event hosted by the Mohawk Showroom (71 West 23rd Street at Sixth Avenue, on the 18th floor) between 6 and 9PM. The awards ceremony is free but you’ll need to RSVP to egb@usgbcny.org no later than this coming Friday. The winning design team will earn a free trip to Greenbuild in Boston in November, where it will compete against other regional Natural Talent Competition winners for a grand prize of $5,000 in cash. The local competition is being judged by representatives from Dattner Architects, Perkins Eastman, and the School Construction Authority.

• EGB 2008 Awards Ceremony (USGBC)

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I spent an afternoon a few weeks ago wandering through Battery Park City’s maze of green buildings and was really impressed with the Riverhouse. Its design team is a cast of all-stars- the exterior of the building was executed by Polshek Partnership Architects (the Clinton Presidential Center and the Rose Center for Earth and Space at the Museum of Natural History), layouts and space planning from Ismael Leyva Architects, and interior finishes and common areas, including the lobby, by David Rockwell’s Rockwell Group. Green features include a geothermal heating and cooling system, photovoltaic cells, low-E double-pane windows, a green roof, and Energy Star appliances. Twenty percent of building materials are recycled and forty percent of the total project materials were procured from local manufacturers. In addition, at a cost of $1 million, the building’s wastewater treatment plant will recycle water for the HVAC system’s cooling tower, and the installation of 60kW microturbines will allow cogeneration of electricity and heat. In addition to the Pop Up Store, one of the building’s commercial units will house specialty organic café City Bakery.

Mr. Dorfman is Vivavi’s CEO, author of The Lazy Environmentalist: Your Guide to Easy, Stylish, Green Living, and host of the Sirius satellite radio program of the same name.

• Vivavi Opens Modern Green Furniture Store (LE)
• Riverhouse (gbNYC)

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Next door, Boymelgreen Developers is looking for retail tenants for The Smith, as residents there begin to move in. The condo building is offering three different retail options ranging from 931 to 7800 square feet. A&I Broadway Realty, which is representing Boymelgreen, is consider all types of retail uses, but the Brooklyn Eagle reports that a restaurant might be the best fit for the space at 75 Smith Street because the Nu Hotel only offers a lounge. A&I’s Elliot Bogod told the Eagle that “[t]he synergy created by the appeal of a brand new hotel is a serious asset for any kind of retail.” While that’s true, perhaps we’ll see a retailer move into the space aiming to capture business from eco-minded tourists that may choose the Nu based upon its green features.

• Nu Hotel Hits Right Notes (NYO)

• Tenants Now Sought for Retail Spaces (Eagle)

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In addition to its tenancy at New York City’s first LEED-certified commercial office building, Scout is committed to sustainable real estate development and business practices. By 2028, the firm intends for all its projects (which are, at least currently, primarily hotels) to be “environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable,” by seeking LEED ratings for all of its new developments, supporting “buy local” programs, and hosting green educational events at each of its properties for both guests and local residents.

Scout has another office in Nantucket and its portfolio includes The Harbor View Hotel & Resort (a $90 million green renovation of a property dating from 1890) and The Kelley House, both on Martha’s Vineyard.

• Scout Plans Beach Resort (MW)

• Scout Capital- Sustainability

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Anbau recently announced that it has completed the 60,000-square-foot project after inking local retail heavyweight Sleepy’s The Mattress Professionals to a long-term lease for the tower’s 4000-square-foot ground-floor retail space. “We are delighted with the success of Harsen House and the contributions this property makes as the newest, greenest, contextually designed addition to the heart of the Upper West Side and the families that will call it home,” Anbau principal Barbara van Beuren told the NYREJ. van Beuren and her husband, Stephen Glascock, founded their firm back in 1998 and are both architects who aim to “to add value not only through design but also through some tangible material benefit for neighbors and the surrounding community.” Harsen House in Abau’s fourth project here in Manhattan and is awaiting an unspecified level of LEED certification from USGBC.

Barry Fishbach and Joshua Strauss of RKF represented Anbau Enterprises in the lease negotiations with Julius M. Feinblum Real Estate Inc. for Sleepy’s.

• Anbau Completes Harsen House (NYREJ)
• LEED Lands on UWS (gbNYC)
• Visitor’s Center Earns NYC’s First Platinum Rating (gbNYC)

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The purpose of the deal is to place New York cabbies at the front of the line for the hybrids, which are currently in high demand all over the country. 1300 of New York’s taxis have already gone hybrid, saving drivers precious fuel money and, of course, reducing the city’s carbon emissions. The 300 figure was crafted to exceed the 210 per month that the Taxi and Limousine Commission estimates are necessary to satisfy new fuel efficiency standards for the taxicab fleet (25 miles per gallon beginning in October).

According to TLC Chairman Matthew Daus, the hybrids “save drivers around $6500 per year and have been passing inspections 85 percent of the time, as compared to the average 54 percent for other prevalent taxicab vehicles. Switching to a hybrid makes more sense for drivers’ wallets, and for our environment.”

Still, the plan is being met with some resistance.  Drivers are voicing concerns over what some see as a policy that is forcing them into hybrids, which have not yet been effectively proven for durability in the eyes of some cab drivers. Critics claim that Mayor Bloomberg is forcing the deal in advance of the readiness of a hybrid that is tested properly for street use by taxis.  While this may be the case, nobody can argue with the savings and better likelihood of passing the TLC fuel efficiency standards that the hybrids offer. Nearly ten percent of the city’s fleet currently consists of hybrid vehicles.

Inside sources claim that Bloomberg’s office was trying to get Ford to increase their commitment on Escapes from the 50 promised, but the beleaguered manufacturer is having difficulty stocking lots with the wildly popular vehicle.

Beginning in October of this year, all taxis except accessible taxis must meet an EPA city mileage rating of 25 miles per gallon.  By October 2009, all city cabs must conform to a minimum city driving rating of 30 miles per gallon. These rules are designed to ensure that by 2012 New York City’s taxi fleet will either be hybrids or powered by some other form of “clean” fuel. 

Taxi industry leaders are seeking to have the city push back the start date of the new rule, which is unlikely because it was introduced to accelerate action on the part of the industry. The original plan (sponsored by David Yassky of Brooklyn) called for an all-hybrid fleet by 2012, but the Bloomberg administration did not believe such a goal would happen without pushing for more immediate measures. 

• Cabbies Criticize Deal for Hybrids (Crain’s)

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The 10,000-square-foot structure housing the Center will be operated by Ramapo College as a study center for both astronomy and environmental education; the NJMC is seeking an unspecified level of LEED certification for the project. Designed by architect Fredric A. Rosen and built by general contractor Bernard Associates, the Center includes a number of classrooms, science labs, and a multipurpose room geared for use by both K-12 students and the general public, offering an environmental curriculum that will also emphasize the building’s sustainable features.

Engineers Di Stasio & Van Buren specified FSC-certified southern yellow pine for , glued, laminated (glulam) timbers and decking, which remain exposed. According to Rosen, the design intent was “a natural look consistent with environmental learning.” The Center’s sloping roof features 165 solar panels that should completely satisfy the building’s electricity needs. Solar tubes were installed in interior ceilings to distribute natural light deep into the interior spaces, which are also equipped with motion-sensor lighting. Other LEED-standard design features include low-VOC and recycled building materials and low-flow bathroom appliances and fixtures.

• Glulam Timbers Support Observatory (PR)

ML is short for our weekly Monday LEEDoff™ column, which typically profiles a different LEED project generally in (but not limited to) the New York City area. You can access an archive of profiled projects via this link.

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