Crystal Pacific Window & Door Systems, the West Coast production affiliate of national manufacturer Crystal Window & Door Systems, recently supplied over 400 energy efficient vinyl windows for a new affordable housing community in San Diego, Calif. Levant Senior Cottages, located at 6950 Levant Street in the Linda Vista neighborhood of San Diego, provides much needed homes for seniors in the area.
The new Crystal Vista Series 4000 vinyl windows offer contemporary styling, are easily operated, and provide substantial daylighting and climate comfort for residents.
“The affordable housing market is critically important and very active now, and Crystal’s quality energy efficient windows and doors are perfect for these projects,” said Steve Chen, President, Crystal Windows. “We are proud to supply affordable housing developments such as Levant Senior Cottages all across the country.”
Senior Living Community Benefits From Crystal Vista 4000 Windows
Crystal Pacific worked closely with the project architect and general contractor throughout the process, accommodating many design changes and weather delays in the construction schedule. Once installed, the windows were water tested and all configurations passed completely.
The Crystal Vista 4000 is designed for superior energy performance, strength, and easy operation. The product line features a 3-¼” multi-chambered frame, ¾” glazing pocket, and narrow sightlines. For this project, Crystal supplied 164 Vista 4000 2-lite (plus a pair of 3-lite) sliding windows and 247 Vista 4000 picture windows. The sliding windows have interlocking sashes, weatherstripping, and cam-action locks for tight seals and large rollers for smooth operation. To add architectural interest and substantial interior daylight, Crystal also provided 286 Vista 4000 trapezoid shape fixed windows matching the roofline pitch. All window frames and sashes were extruded white vinyl.
The Levant Senior Cottages Vista 4000 windows were all glazed with dual-pane tempered ¾” insulated glass units using Cardinal LoĒ3-366 coating, warm-edge spacing systems, and argon gas filling. These glass units provide extraordinary energy performance in the Southern California climate and sun.
Providing design services for the project was RNT Architects of San Diego, Calif., and Allgire Construction of Carlsbad, Calif., was the project general contractor. Window installation was handled by JMI of Oceanside, Calif., a major commercial fenestration contractor in the region.
Levant Senior Cottages, which officially opened in May 2024, is situated on 4.5 acres of land owned by San Diego County, and it was developed with a public-private partnership as part of a larger initiative to repurpose excess county land. The new community offers an intriguing affordable response to the urgent need for senior housing. Levant Senior Cottages includes 127 studio and one-bedroom units in 18 single-story five-unit buildings and two elevator-serviced two-story buildings.
The complex includes a large community center, laundry facilities, courtyard gardens, and a small dog park. Medical and social services for eligible residents, provided by St. Paul’s Program of All Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), will also be available on site.
Related Stories
| May 20, 2014
Kinetic Architecture: New book explores innovations in active façades
The book, co-authored by Arup's Russell Fortmeyer, illustrates the various ways architects, consultants, and engineers approach energy and comfort by manipulating air, water, and light through the layers of passive and active building envelope systems.
| May 19, 2014
What can architects learn from nature’s 3.8 billion years of experience?
In a new report, HOK and Biomimicry 3.8 partnered to study how lessons from the temperate broadleaf forest biome, which houses many of the world’s largest population centers, can inform the design of the built environment.
| May 13, 2014
19 industry groups team to promote resilient planning and building materials
The industry associations, with more than 700,000 members generating almost $1 trillion in GDP, have issued a joint statement on resilience, pushing design and building solutions for disaster mitigation.
| May 11, 2014
Final call for entries: 2014 Giants 300 survey
BD+C's 2014 Giants 300 survey forms are due Wednesday, May 21. Survey results will be published in our July 2014 issue. The annual Giants 300 Report ranks the top AEC firms in commercial construction, by revenue.
| Apr 29, 2014
USGBC launches real-time green building data dashboard
The online data visualization resource highlights green building data for each state and Washington, D.C.
| Apr 11, 2014
ULI report documents business case for building healthy projects
Sustainable and wellness-related design strategies embody a strong return on investment, according to a report by the Urban Land Institute.
| Apr 9, 2014
Steel decks: 11 tips for their proper use | BD+C
Building Teams have been using steel decks with proven success for 75 years. Building Design+Construction consulted with technical experts from the Steel Deck Institute and the deck manufacturing industry for their advice on how best to use steel decking.
| Apr 2, 2014
8 tips for avoiding thermal bridges in window applications
Aligning thermal breaks and applying air barriers are among the top design and installation tricks recommended by building enclosure experts.
| Mar 27, 2014
16 kitchen and bath design trends for 2014
Work on multifamily housing projects? Here are the top kitchen and bath design trends, according to a survey of more than 420 kitchen and bath designers.
| Mar 26, 2014
Callison launches sustainable design tool with 84 proven strategies
Hybrid ventilation, nighttime cooling, and fuel cell technology are among the dozens of sustainable design techniques profiled by Callison on its new website, Matrix.Callison.com.