Based on a 2004 master plan created by Robert A.M. Stern Architects, the Navy Yard is a redevelopment of Philadelphia’s historic navy yard located along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers just three miles (4.8 km) from the city center. Under development by the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC), the 1,200-acre (485.6-ha) project comprises both new construction and adaptive use, with an ethic of sustainability permeating all aspects of planning, development, and operations. At buildout and after an expected $2 billion in private investment through public/private partnerships, the Navy Yard will feature a total of 15 million square feet (1.4 million sq m) of space and will support more than 20,000 employees. As of February 2009, the project has a number of tenants Including Urban Outfitters, the Aker Philadelphia Shipyard, Barthco International, Tasty Baking Company, and the U.S. Navy, and over 7,500 employees working there.
PNC Firstside Center is a large-scale, environmentally sustainable facility that is used for operations, processing, and many other traditional back-office functions for PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Completed in September 2000, this five-story, 650,000-square-foot (6,038-square-meter) structure has achieved the distinction of being a LEED-certified green building under the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. Located on a former brownfield in downtown Pittsburgh, the edifice offers an employee-friendly environment with plenty of natural light, fresh air, and sustainable building systems. As a benefit to the city of Pittsburgh, the redevelopment of this formerly idle site brought new life and activity to this underutilized section of downtown.
Pearl Court Apartments, completed in September 1997, is a full-block development at the edge of downtown in Portland’s emerging River District, a new neighborhood growing out of 70 acres of vacant railroad yard between downtown Portland and the Willamette River. The building’s 199 apartments are rented at rates that residents earning 40 percent to 60 percent of the area median income can afford. The building features a library, a formal two-level lobby with a fireplace, numerous lounges and outdoor decks, and a large bicycle room. The apartments enclose a landscaped courtyard.
Lowry is a 1,866-acre (755-hectare) master-planned community being developed on the site of the former Lowry Air Force Base in the center of metropolitan Denver. When completed in 2009, Lowry will feature approximately 4,500 new homes and 86 acres (35 hectares) of commercial uses–including 1.8 million square feet (167,220 square meters) of new office space and 130,000 square feet (12,077 square meters) of retail space–as well as an educational campus and 800 acres (324 hectares) of open space and recreational uses. Eighty percent complete as of early 2006, Lowry already has accomplished its goal of becoming an economic generator for the region. The community, which has moved faster from closing to reuse than any other U.S. military facility, is a national model for base reuse.
The Can Company is an adaptive use project on the site of the former American Can Company factory in the Baltimore neighborhood of Canton. The mixed-use development includes more than 60,000 square feet of retail and 140,000 square feet of commercial space and serves as the centerpiece of southeast Baltimore’s renaissance. A total of 290 cars can be accommodated in a surface parking lot and a garage constructed within one of the existing buildings. A lease agreement with the adjacent supermarket adds 30 additional spaces for use by Can Company tenants. The Can Company rests between the old Canton neighborhood — blocks of established housing and corner bars and markets — and the new Canton neighborhood — waterfront condominiums, townhomes, and marinas. Its location is fitting in that it has successfully blended the new with the old through architectural design, tenant recruitment, and community involvement.
Elleven is a 13-story condominium tower located in downtown Los Angeles. The first of a four-building high-rise community called the South Collection, Elleven consists of 176 units that include studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom “soft loft” condos and live/work townhouses. With low-VOC materials and finishes, water-efficient fixtures and landscaping, energy-efficient appliances, and use of materials such as wheatboard cabinetry and bamboo flooring, Elleven is a green structure and has registered for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. The building also includes 5,245 square feet (487 square meters) of retail space and 258 parking spots.
Located on the Thames River in East London and launched in 1999, Greenwich Millennium Village (GMV) encompasses 25.8 hectares (63.8 acres) and represents a £689 million public/private investment. At buildout, expected in 2013, GMV will comprise 2,956 residential units (30 percent of which will be affordable), 6,548 square meters (70,396 square feet) of office space, and 2,325 square meters (25,000 square feet) of retail property. Designed to be sustainable, the Village is constructed with green building materials and incorporates passive solar architecture, high-grade insulation, and efficient appliances that are forecast to reduce energy consumption by 80 percent. In addition, a cogeneration power plant helps meet the project’s electrical and heating needs.
Remediation and redevelopment of a 42-acre island in the Allegheny River near downtown Pittsburgh into a high-quality multiuse development featuring office, light industrial, residential, and recreational uses. Through the commitment of significant local, state, and federal resources, the city of Pittsburgh and the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh have transformed a derelict urban brownfield site into a premiere business and residential location offering waterfront amenities and secluded views of the downtown skyline.
The SteelStacks Arts and Cultural Campus is a former steel mill site that has been restored, adapted, and transformed into an arts and cultural campus that features preserved blast furnaces and other historic steel mill buildings, an elevated walkway/trestle that offers up-close views of the blast furnaces, a visitor/exhibit center in a historic building, parks and outdoor plazas, an outdoor performing arts pavilion, an office building and production studios for the local public broadcasting station, and a new ArtsQuest Center building devoted to performing arts of all types.
The redevelopment was funded via a variety of sources, including tax increment financing revenues, donations from businesses and philanthropic organizations, and funds and tax credits from federal and state governments. The 9.5-acre development has become a major tourist attraction and a source of pride for the city of Bethlehem, and the steel stacks themselves are iconic structures unlike any others in the United States.
Via Verde is a mixed-income residential development offering innovative, high-quality sustainable design and affordable rental and ownership housing for people at a range of income levels, combined with health-focused amenities. Located on a brownfield site in the South Bronx, the project includes 222 residential units, 7,500 square feet of retail space, and 40,000 square feet of green roofs and other open space for residents. The development addresses the community’s health issues with opportunities for exercise, fresh fruits and vegetables grown on site, and a clinic within the building.
