AIA Honors Top 10 Sustainable Buildings of 2018

As a lead-up to Earth Day, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Committee on the Environment (COTE) announced the 2018 recipients of its COTE Top Ten Awards. Honoring projects that have surpassed rigorous thresholds in integration, energy use, water conservation and wellness benchmarks, the award showcases cutting-edge buildings that are not only sustainable, but that contribute to the surrounding neighborhood. 

The 2018 awardees ranged in usage from libraries to art galleries, as well as one single-family home. 

The winners are:

Albion District Library; Toronto
Architect: Perkins+Will

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According to the jury: “This project clearly demonstrates the immediate positive impact of good design. A district library that serves a diverse and newly-immigrant community, the library has a dramatically increased visitorship (with a notable 75 percent increase for teenagers) over the old facility.”

 

Georgia Tech Engineered Biosystems Building; Atlanta
Architect: Lake|Flato in collaboration with Cooper Carry

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According to the jury: “The Georgia Tech Engineered Biosystems Building weaves a large array of active and passive strategies into a highly tuned machine for this university research laboratory.”

 

Mundo Verde at Cook Campus; Washington, D.C.
Architect: Studio Twenty Seven Architecture

According to the jury: “A 25,000-gallon cistern holds rainwater for reuse, while the gardens have increased site vegetation from zero to 40 percent.”

 

Nancy and Stephen Grand Family House; San Francisco
Architect: Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects

According to the jury: “This cost-effective building serves a community of sick children and their families while prioritizing environmental performance.”

 

New United States Courthouse; Los Angeles
Architect: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP

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According to the jury: “We were impressed with the quality of the calm, light-filled interior spaces for occupants who are often in the courthouse under difficult circumstances.”

 

Ortlieb’s Bottling House; Philadelphia
Architect: KieranTimberlake

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According to the jury: “An exceptional example of passive strategies used in adaptive reuse of a historic urban building.”

 

The Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum; Washington, D.C.
Architect: DLR Group

According to the jury: “The Renwick Gallery renovation wove complex and robust new systems while preserving the impressive historic design and collection and allowing opportunities for new works to be displayed.”

 

San Francisco Art Institute – Fort Mason Center Pier 2; San Francisco
Architect: Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects

According to the jury: “The design team recognized the assets of the existing structure and created a great, low-energy building with a healthy interior environment.”

 

Sawmill; Tehachapi, Calif.
Architect: Olson Kundig

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According to the jury: “The team is commended for their site-specific analysis, as evidenced by the decision to let rainwater recharge the water table rather than collect it. If a single-family dwelling is to be built in a desert climate, this is how to do it.”

 

Sonoma Academy’s Janet Durgin Guild & Commons; Santa Rosa, Calif.
Architect: WRNS Studio

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According to the jury: “This project demonstrates that, even with an energy-heavy program that includes a commercial kitchen, a fully integrated and dedicated design team can produce a beautiful and extremely well-performing building.”

 

Article Source: https://www.proudgreenbuilding.com/news/aia-honors-top-10-sustainable-buildings-of-2018/ 

Elise Barnes