christy webber landscapes headquarters
COURTYARD BUILDING, ROOFTOP GARDEN, OPEN FOR BUSINESS
Inspired by the pioneering sustainable design of the adjacent Chicago Center for Green Technology, Christy Webber asked Farr Associates to design her company a new green headquarters (as the flagship of her eco-industrial park). Her design guidance was as clear as it was wise: apply only those sustainable strategies and technologies from CCGT that made business sense. Knowing the design of CCGT, she was on board with Integrated Design Thinking, that every element of a design should provide multiple benefits.
The building program was a split between clean, conditioned spaces for offices and studios and dirty, semi-conditioned spaces for vehicle service and repair. These two programs were shaped into parallel east-west building wings, connected with a spine of common rooms to form an east-facing courtyard. The narrow 44’ depth of the studio wing combined with light shelves maximizes natural light, a combination projected to reduce lighting energy by 40%.
Almost 13% of the building’s annual energy usage is harnessed from renewable sources such as active solar thermal water and air, geo-thermal, and an 80’ vertical wind turbine. Each wing incorporates a different approach to mechanical systems. The office wing incorporates a raised-floor plenum that enables quick air distribution adjustments and recabling, while the vehicle wing pioneered the use of washable fabric ducts and a south-facing intake air preheat panels.
The rooftop was designed to allow people to experience landscape in and on buildings. A half-dozen larger caliper trees were placed on the roof, a Chicago first, while a rooftop greenhouse anticipates an agrarian future for cities. In an inspired moment of integrated thinking, the greenhouse pre-heats the intake air for the office wing.
The specification of low VOC paint, carpet, adhesive, and wood products to improve indoor air quality helps build a market and shifts these products to the mainstream. The extensive green roof absorbs and evaporates rainwater where it falls, and aids in the cooling of the building and surrounding environment, reducing the urban heat island effect. This flagship facility was only the 59th LEED-Platinum building in the world, is a timeless exemplar of business-friendly sustainability, and speaks to Christy’s fearless leadership on the environment.
Client: Christy Webber Landscapes
Location: Chicago, IL
Year: 2004
Certification: LEED-NC Platinum
Awards:
2006 AIA Chicago Distinguished Building Award
2007 AIA Chicago Sustainable Design Award: Excellence in Architecture
2007 Chicago Building Congress Merit Award: Construction Under $10 Million
2008 Chicago Neighborhood Development Award
2008 Structural Engineers Association of Illinois - Best Medium Structure Project
