by: Camila Schaulsohn
On 11.15.17, green building enthusiasts gathered at the Center for Architecture to celebrate the winners of the 2017 AIANY COTE Awards. Modeled on the COTE National Awards, the AIANY COTE Awards celebrate exemplars of sustainable design specific to the unique climatic and urban density challenges faced in the North Eastern metropolitan corridor. They aim to make transparent lessons learned and reveal processes behind innovation in an urban context, promoting a greater understanding of design strategies that reveal and inspire new materials, technologies, and design solutions.
Congratulations to this year’s winners:
Honor Award: One John Street, Alloy De
velopment (Brooklyn, NY)
“One John Street showcases what can be achieved through public-private partnerships and what the future of sustainable design might look like.” – Claire Weisz, FAIA, Partner, WXY
One John Street was recognized for its beautiful, well-detailed design that incorporates high-performance elements for energy and water reduction with thoughtful interventions for water resilience. The jury found the design to be almost Swiss in its detailed execution and appreciated the move away from a fully glazed curtainwall. Storm protection includes an elevated ground floor, a co-gen system that ties into each apartment, and abundant native plantings coordinated with the adjacent park. Especially impressive is that this building was built on city-owned land, demonstrating what a strong public-private partnership can achieve.
Merit Award: Northeastern University Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex, Payette (Boston, MA)
“This project stands out for its exemplary EUI, water reductions, and iconic design.” – Lisa Matthiessen, FAIA, LEED Fellow Sustainability Expert, Matthiessen Consulting & Urban Fabric
Meeting the complicated programming requirements for this kind of building, the designers integrated many efficient elements into an iconic design, including the bris-soleil, a didactic element that adds architectural interest while doing what it says it is supposed to do – reducing cooling loads. The jurors commend the design team for its energy use intensity (EUI) and significant water reductions, achieved via rainwater collection, low-flow fixtures, landscaped bio-swales, native plantings, and a cooling tower. The team also achieved 82% construction waste diversion, 62% solar reduction, and 78% peak solar heat gain reduction
Merit Award: Vassar College Bridge for Laboratory Sciences Integrated Science Commons, Ennead Architects (Poughkeepsie, NY)
“This facility is admired for its site response and its design that reflects the native trees and wetlands. It is impressive that all of this was achieved while constructing multi-purpose lab spaces.” – William Menking, Editor-in-Chief, The Architect’s Newspaper
The jury commended this building for its strong connection to its site, adjacent to a wetland corridor, including its sensitive scale of design and massing and visual linkages. They also noted that the team integrated bird safety into the façade design, important for the location. The building demonstrates excellent water reduction initiatives: rainwater harvesting leads to an 84% reduction in water use for outdoor irrigation and the design includes 100% storm water management.