ECOCHARRETTE STIRS INTEREST IN HISTORIC GREENRISE RENOVATION

ICA staff have been thinking critically on how to ensure the future of ICA GreenRise, ICA’s historic 8-story Uptown building. In addition to immediate concerns, such as completing an intensive replacement and repair of the plumbing system, there have been great strides to finalize a plan to sustainably renovate and restore the building to its original grandeur.

In 2012, ICA committed to Retrofit Chicago’s goal to reduce energy usage by 20% by 2017; we exceeded that goal by reducing 23% in just four years, leading to the recognition of GreenRise as a member of the Retrofit Chicago Mayor’s Leadership Circle for Outstanding Energy Efficiency Achievement. ICA has positioned the GreenRise as an innovative and successful sustainable learning laboratory and nonprofit service center, thus the renovation and restoration project has drawn a lot of interest and eagerness to participate from professionals across Chicago.

On Oct. 25th, 25 people attended the ICA GreenRise EcoCharrette to strategize goals and discuss how sustainably renovating the GreenRise can improve the quality of life for people who live, work, and receive services in the building.

Some of the most probing questions of the day were:

• What is the long-range plan for the building?
  
• What is the best use of resources? Highest Performance?
  
• How do you get the most out of the space available?
  
• How do we use the design to generate revenue?

Although the specific details and timeline of the project are being refined, the EcoCharrette generated a framework for rethinking how the GreenRise deals with its water, windows (for daylighting and circulation), building envelope, and an infrastructure modernization for thermal comfort.

Farr Associates Architecture, organizers of the EcoCharrette, intentionally used a format that stressed an integrated design process that included the client, architect and engineers in order to ensure maximum buy-in to the project from the start. Technical experts on the project included Farr Associates, dbHMS (plumbing and electric engineers), BTL Architects, and building enclosure specialists. The charrette also involved GreenRise experts from members of the ICA staff, residents, and volunteers. Bringing such diverse stakeholders together created a set of ideas that when implemented, will foster a holistic, environmentally friendly, beautifully restored, comfortable and functional community space.