New York – Forest House apartments in New York takes affordable urban living to new sustainable green heights. The eight-story, 124-unit apartment project is located in the low-income area of South Bronx and will include a rooftop “urban farm.” This 10,000sf rooftop greenhouse will be commercially operated, providing fresh, hydroponically grown produce to tenants and neighbors in the community through local distribution points.
Blue Sea Development, working with ABS Architects and Danois Architects, developed the project with precaster Oldcastle Building Systems. According to David Wan, P.E., LEED AP at Oldcastle, this is the “first affordable housing project with a rooftop greenhouse.”
The greenhouse includes a water retention system that will manage 491,000 gallons of storm water per year. This water would have flowed into the East River, but will now be diverted to the greenhouse and to an additional 11,000sf of landscaped green space. The storm water recapture system provided by Oldcastle was instrumental in winning a grant from New York’s Department of Environmental Protection. Storm water is a huge problem for New York and projects like this provide shining examples of viable solutions.
The precast concrete erection started in August 2011 and was completed by November 2011. Oldcastle manufactured 134,000sf of 8- and 12-inch thick hollow core planks, 190 8-in. thick exterior thin brick exterior bearing wall panels and 180 8-in. thick interior bearing walls, along with precast concrete parapets, lintel beams, stairs, and landings. Precast concrete not only minimizes job site activity and debris, but the quick erection time of four months for 124 studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments allows plenty of time for interior trades to meet the occupation deadline of fall 2012.
There are numerous green reasons for choosing precast concrete, starting with the actual production of the concrete, made in part with coal ash, a by-product from coal furnaces. This ash is recycled into the cement mix and adds to the strength of the concrete. Using local precast concrete suppliers like Oldcastle means less transportation of heavy precast pieces, lowering carbon emissions. The brick exterior uses precast wall panels that have thin brick pieces set into the panel forms before the concrete is poured. This process uses 15% less material than a normal brick and mortar wall and provides a brick façade with a longer life expectancy and very little, if any, maintenance.
Precast concrete in conjunction with a continuous in. thick layer of XPS insulation provided a 100% thermal separation of the building interior from the outside environment,” according to Wan. This translates to energy savings that will keep tenants warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer while costing less.
This total precast concrete project goes beyond green and into a better quality of living. Precast concrete is fireproof and keeps fire from spreading, allowing time for residents evacuate safely should the need arise. Noise reduction is another benefit of precast concrete. The reduction of sound from floor to floor is diminished, as is outside street noise. Mold resilience is also a reason to build with precast concrete, since mold naturally doesn’t like concrete as a food source and generally doesn’t grow there.
Rounding out the green attributes of the project, Oldcastle Allied Building Products is supplying 3,000sf. of solar panels. With energy efficient lighting, appliances, a specialized ventilation system and environmentally safe interior materials, this project is not only environmentally green, it is also fiscally responsible.
The architectural design of the project and the use of precast concrete will help the project achieve LEED Gold and Energy Star Certification. It will serve as a higher standard for affordable living. A healthier living environment that is energy efficient will be an example for other developers to follow and proves that affordable green housing is possible.