The city of Jackson, Wyo., gets around 400 inches of snow falls a year, and its valley location means most of the city’s produce is brought in from other places, ArchPaper reports. With these two conditions, there can be times when the city is cut off and becomes a food desert.
This sparked the concept of building vertical gardens so the city has a better chance of self-sustaining when it comes to fresh produce. Sustainable community specialist Penny McBride and designer Nona Yehia came together and founded Vertical Harvest Jackson Hole, which will construct a three-story, 13,500-sf hydroponic greenhouse to be placed on leftover land that’s only one-tenth of an acre. The company enlisted Larssen Ltd. to engineer the greenhouses and assist with design.
Though the greenhouses may be lean and narrow, the multiple stories add up to five acres of agricultural space. A timed, carousel system will revolve trays of plants to maximize south sun exposure.
“We will be growing 100,000 pounds of vegetables a year,” Yehia said, adding that the produce can be sold to restaurants, hospitals, and the local community.
Fruits and vegetables aren’t the only thing Vertical Harvest will produce—jobs will also be part of the greenhouse’s repertoire.
“Vertical Harvest will establish an innovative model to employ an under-served Wyoming population: adults with developmental disabilities,” the firm said in a statement.
The greenhouses are slated to open in December 2015.
Related Stories
| Feb 15, 2012
Code allowance offers retailers and commercial building owners increased energy savings and reduced construction costs
Specifying air curtains as energy-saving, cost-cutting alternatives to vestibules in 3,000-square-foot buildings and larger has been a recent trend among consulting engineers and architects.
| Feb 8, 2012
World’s tallest solar PV-installation
The solar array is at the elevation of 737 feet, making the building the tallest in the world with a solar PV-installation on its roof.
| Jan 31, 2012
Chapman Construction/Design: ‘Sustainability is part of everything we do’
Chapman Construction/Design builds a working culture around sustainability—for its clients, and for its employees.
| Jan 19, 2012
LEED puts the 'Gold' in Riverside golden arches
McDonald's restaurant recognized for significant energy savings.
| Jan 15, 2012
Hollister Construction Services oversees interior office fit-out for Harding Loevner
The work includes constructing open space areas, new conference, trading and training rooms, along with multiple kitchenettes.
| Jan 15, 2012
Smith Consulting Architects designs Flower Hill Promenade expansion in Del Mar, Calif.
The $22 million expansion includes a 75,000-square-foot, two-story retail/office building and a 397-car parking structure, along with parking and circulation improvements and new landscaping throughout.
| Jan 9, 2012
Thornton Tomasetti acquires green consulting firm Fore Solutions
International engineering firm launches new building sustainability practice.
| Jan 6, 2012
Summit Design+Build completes Park Place in Illinois
Summit was responsible for the complete gut and renovation of the former auto repair shop which required the partial demolition of the existing building, while maintaining the integrity of the original 100 year-old structure, and significant re-grading and landscaping of the site.
| Jan 4, 2012
Shawmut Design & Construction awarded dorm renovations at Brown University
Construction is scheduled to begin in June 2012, and will be completed by December 2012.
| Dec 12, 2011
Skanska to expand and renovate hospital in Georgia for $103 Million
The expansion includes a four-story, 17,500 square meters clinical services building and a five-story, 15,700 square meters, medical office building. Skanska will also renovate the main hospital.
