Seaport Square has become one of the most sought-after development areas in and around Boston.
This new and exciting neighborhood created from 23 acres of undeveloped (and underdeveloped) land in South Boston’s Seaport District was master planned to offer world-class office and research spaces, retail, restaurants, shops, residences, hotels, parks and other recreational areas on Boston’s waterfront.
The developers, along with city and state officials had a vision to create a very sustainable neighborhood. To this end, during the master planning, the developers worked very closely with MEPA to create a variety design requirements which would have to be implemented during each block development.
Working in the area, there are some interesting correlations with current city and development design requirements that future development teams will need to keep in mind.
For instance, because the development is located within the City of Boston, most of the properties that would be designed in this area have to meet the Stretch Energy Code and BRA Articles 37 and 80.
The development and design team have to account for optimization of Building’s Energy Performance and Greenhouse Gas Emissions among others. We found that we exceed the city’s Stretch Energy Code and BRA Article 37 by virtue of meeting the development’s energy requirements.
BRA’s Article 37 requires that new buildings be: “LEED Certifiable”, a structure that is planned, designed and constructed to achieve the level “certified” using the LEED building rating system most appropriate for the Proposed Project.” Projects in Seaport Square required LEED Certification therefore exceeding the city’s minimum requirements.
As a byproduct of the LEED requirement and that the development requires buildings to use 21.5% less energy than required to meet the state building Code. This works well since the City of Boston has adopted the Energy Stretch Code which requires buildings to reduced energy by 20% over the state’s energy Code.
The development and design teams have often met these requirements by providing a optimized envelop design which includes high-performance glazing, walls and roof assemblies in addition to heat recovery systems on all central ventilation, energy efficient HVAC systems including VFD, water use reduction, lighting power density reduction, room lighting / temperature control (for hotels) among others.
The important aspect to keep in mind is that the project’s energy, energy-cost, and greenhouse gas emission requirements are best fulfilled through a holistic approach to the building design. By coupling the architectural massing, envelope components & orientation along with the support mechanical, electrical, and plumbing system that the project Code requirements, goals, and operational intent can be fulfilled. The upfront planning, challenging of the design, and optimization can bring real savings and occupant benefits for years to come.
We are finding that, although Seaport Square development has a greater sustainable requirement that the city’s, it has become much easier to achieve the many of the basic LEED and other sustainable designs on projects throughout the industry.
This is why we see many municipalities across the Unites States adopting similar sustainable design features as part of their developments.
It’s an exciting time to see our local neighborhood being transformed into the next generation of the ‘built-environment’.
Alfonso Hernandez is a project manager at R.G. Vanderweil Engineers, LLC in Boston, Mass.