A groundbreaking on Oct. 11 kicked off a project aiming to construct the largest Living Building Challenge-certified residence on a university campus. The Living Village, a 45,000 sf home for Yale University Divinity School graduate students, “will make an ecological statement about the need to build in harmony with the natural world while training students to become ‘apostles of the environment’,” according to Bruner/Cott, which is leading the design team that includes Höweler + Yoon Architecture and Andropogon Associates.
Designed to achieve 24.4 EUI (energy use intensity per sf annually), the facility will be net-positive for energy. Solar roof tiles and a photovoltaic canopy over a parking lot will generate 310,000 kWh of electricity, or 105% of the power the residence consumes averaged out over a year, according to Jason Jewhurst, AIA, Principal, Bruner/Cott.
The power system will have a net-metered connection to the grid. “We expect to generate surplus energy for six months of the year,” Jewhurst says. Ducted air-source heat pumps will provide heating and cooling. Fresh air will be supplied by a separate dedicated outdoor air system (DOAS).
A water reclamation system with a capacity for about 900,000 gallons a year will treat greywater for reuse in toilets, laundry, and drip irrigation, Jewhurst says. Underground cisterns will collect rainwater runoff from the roof.
Below-market-rate residential units will range from micro studios to one and two-bedroom apartments. A single-loaded corridor layout ensures that all rooms have views of a central courtyard. Common areas will include lounges, study nooks, and a community kitchen that will host celebrations and events. Outdoor amenities on the 4.5-acre site include an amphitheater, community terrace, and regenerative landscape over a former parking lot.
The superstructure will be assembled using low-carbon mass-timber and dimensional lumber. All building materials will meet the rigorous requirements of the Living Building Challenge’s materials petal that specifies products free of toxins and harmful chemicals.
Real-time water and energy usage monitors will provide residents and the university community with insight on sustainable buildings.
On the project team:
Owner and/or developer: Yale Divinity School
Design architect: Bruner/Cott Architects with Höweler + Yoon Architecture
Landscape Architect: Andropogon Associates
MEP engineer: van Zelm Engineers
Structural engineer: Silman
Related Stories
MFPRO+ New Projects | Oct 30, 2024
BIG’s One High Line finally reaches completion in New York City’s West Chelsea neighborhood
One High Line, a luxury residential project spanning a full city block in New York’s West Chelsea neighborhood, reached completion this summer following years of delays related to investor lawsuits.
MFPRO+ New Projects | Oct 30, 2024
Luxury waterfront tower in Brooklyn features East River and Manhattan skyline views
Leasing recently began for The Dupont, a 41-story luxury rental property along the Brooklyn, N.Y., waterfront. Located within the 22-acre Greenpoint Landing, where it overlooks the newly constructed Newtown Barge Park, the high-rise features East River and Manhattan skyline views along with 20,000 sf of indoor and outdoor communal space.
Office Buildings | Oct 29, 2024
Editorial call for Office Building project case studies
BD+C editors are looking to feature a roundup of office building projects for 2024, including office-to-residential conversions. Deadline for submission: December 6, 2024.
Adaptive Reuse | Oct 22, 2024
Adaptive reuse project transforms 1840s-era mill building into rental housing
A recently opened multifamily property in Lawrence, Mass., is an adaptive reuse of an 1840s-era mill building. Stone Mill Lofts is one of the first all-electric mixed-income multifamily properties in Massachusetts. The all-electric building meets ambitious modern energy codes and stringent National Park Service historic preservation guidelines.
Student Housing | Oct 9, 2024
University of Maryland begins work on $148 million graduate student housing development
The University of Maryland, in partnership with Campus Apartments and Mosaic Development Partners, has broken ground on a $148.75 million graduate student housing project on the university’s flagship College Park campus. The project will add 741 beds in 465 fully furnished apartments.
Mixed-Use | Oct 7, 2024
New mixed-use tower by Studio Gang completes first phase of San Francisco waterfront redevelopment
Construction was recently completed on Verde, a new mixed-use tower along the San Francisco waterfront, marking the end of the first phase of the Mission Rock development. Verde is the fourth and final building of phase one of the 28-acre project that will be constructed in several phases guided by design principles developed by a design cohort led by Studio Gang.
Affordable Housing | Oct 4, 2024
3 new affordable housing projects for October 2024
As affordable housing continues to grow, more projects are looking to diversify their footprint by adding mixed-use components, community areas, and more.
Mixed-Use | Sep 19, 2024
A Toronto development will transform a 32-acre shopping center site into a mixed-use urban neighborhood
Toronto developers Mattamy Homes and QuadReal Property Group have launched The Clove, the first phase in the Cloverdale, a $6 billion multi-tower development. The project will transform Cloverdale Mall, a 32-acre shopping center in Toronto, into a mixed-use urban neighborhood.
MFPRO+ New Projects | Sep 5, 2024
Chicago's Coppia luxury multifamily high-rise features geometric figures on the façade
Coppia, a new high-rise luxury multifamily property in Chicago, features a distinctive façade with geometric features and resort-style amenities. The 19-story, 315,000-sf building has more than 24,000 sf of amenity space designed to extend resident’s living spaces. These areas offer places to work, socialize, exercise, and unwind.
Mixed-Use | Aug 21, 2024
Adaptive reuse of a Sears store becomes luxury mixed-use housing
6 Corners Lofts at 4714 W Irving Park Road, Chicago, Ill., opened in March of 2024 as a 394,000-sf adaptive reuse project born out of a former Sears store.
