Owner:
Art Park Residences, LLC

Developer:
Urbanica Inc

Architect:
Urbanica Design, Inc

Contractor:
Urbanica Construcation, Inc

Landscape Architect:
Ground, Inc

Community Garden Partner:
Boston Natural Areas Network

MEP + Energy Consultant:
In-Posse

Energy Modeller, HERS Rater & LEED for Homes Certifier:
Conservation Services Group

Solar PV Consultant:
Transformation Solar

Home Energy Monitoring:
Coincident, Inc

Structural Engineer:
David M. Berg Associates, Inc

Civil Engineer:
Howard/Stein-Hudson

Housing

• 40,000 sqft residential
• 33 units
• 2.5 stories at Terrace St.
• 4 stories at Parker St.

Commercial

• 3,000 sqft ground gloor gallery/cafe

Public Open Spaces/Art Park

• “Art walk” and sculpture court

Community Garden

• 14,000 sqft community garden

Parking

• 30 Bike spaces
• 25 Car spaces

The circulation inside of the garden will be constructed with permeable concrete pavers that allow porosity and accessibility. Other accessibility measures include a variety of raised planting beds at different heights and sizes. Water runoff will be collected at the low points of the community garden and stored for supplemental irrigation. Space for composting, tool and material storage, as well as a small seating plaza will make the garden a productive source of agriculture as well as an active community open space.

The management of the community garden will be in partnership with Boston Natural Area Network (BNAN), whereby BNAN is interested in a long term lease of not less than 50 years for the garden property with the option to become the owner. BNAN suggests a five year evaluation period after which both parties would discuss options for ownership or continuation of the lease.

BNAN will work with the returning (existing garderners of the unofficial Parker Street Guerilla Garden) and new gardeners from the area to organize the garden space. Individual gardeners will maintain plots for the purposes of growing produce and ornamentals for their own consumption and enjoyment. Common areas will be maintained collectively by the group of gardeners. The garden should be open and available permanently to the residents of Mission Hill.

On Parker Street, the building is expressed as two upright boxes with proportions that are based on the existing townhouses types in the area. The façade, which will overlook the community garden, is comprised as a series of attached porches with operable wood shutters for privacy.

On Terrace St. the building façade is made up of a two story, horizontally-oriented box made of burnt orange metal panel over a ground floor, glass storefront system. The expression is a decidedly more industrial aesthetic. The long bar, which connects the upper and lower blocks, makes up the rest of the building. The long bar’s material expression mediates between the upper and lower building expressions. The primary exterior cladding of the long bar is a burnt orange metal panel with carved out areas that are clad in wood

The design approach is based on three major strategies for energy reduction: first, the building will have a super-insulated building envelope that will minimize heat transfer without mechanical conditioning techniques; second, feedback mechanisms will provide energy consumption information to residents, and lastly, there will be an integrated landscaping strategy to take advantage of the site’s slope to capture and recycle water run-off for both gray water use and irrigation for native landscaping.

The building’s form and orientation serve to maximize natural daylight and solar gain for the photo-voltaic array. In addition to the roof the building, an outdoor covered parking lot will also be covered by solar panels. Taken together over the course of a year, the photo-voltaic array will generate more electricity than is required on site.

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Rating: 90
Pts above Platinum: 6.5