taking green to a new height

Proving that money is not the only kind of green valued by bankers, Bank of America is building a state of the art tower in New York that is said to be the country’s greenest high-rise building. Reminiscent of one of those kryptonite crystals in the old superman movies, it’s estimated that this building, due for completion in 2008, will use 50% less energy and 50% less potable water than similar sized buildings and will create net zero carbon dioxide emissions.

Among the features of this 54 story, 2.1 million square foot tower:

• An air filtration system that will remove 95% of particulates, ozone and volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
• Air vented back into the city will be cleaner than that taken in, effectively making the tower into something akin to a gigantic air filter
• On site 5.1 megawatt, clean natural gas burning power plant to supply 70% of the building’s power

• Water efficient systems such as waterless urinals (we're scratching our heads on this one) and low-flow fixtures that will save an estimated 10.3 million gallons of water annually
• 100% rainwater re-usage

This will be among the first high-rise buildings to strive for U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) “Platinum” designation. To get an idea of how rigorous a platinum designation is, of the approximately 550 buildings which have been LEEDS certified since 2000, only 20 have achieved platinum certification nationwide.

Hoorah for clean banking and design.

Click here for more information on the Bank of America Tower at One Bryant Park

Comments

[Josh]

for those who are interested, Dwell magazine has a conference this month in San Francisco which touches on a number of these types of issues.

"Experience architecture through the lens of prefab, sustainability, affordability and urban design. Dwell on Design Conference + Exhibition takes place in San Francisco’s Concourse Exhibition Center during the heart of the AIA’s third annual Architecture and the City month. All Dwell on Design conference attendees will be eligible to receive AIA continuing education credit."

You can register at http://www.regonline.com/Checkin.asp?EventId=101354

Soap

Josh

[TAH]

You call yourselfs green and don't know about
Waterless urinals?

[Alexandria]

My dad, who is a VP for Bank of America, has been one of the head people working on this building for the past several years-he usually refers to it as the "1 Bryant Park Project." The waterless urinals are coated with Teflon, or some such material, so that the urine literally just slides off of the urinal and empties at the bottom. Totally cool! It makes me feel good to know that my dad's been a part of creating the country's greenest high rise!