AIA's 2014 top ten green buildings in the US

The American Institute of Architects has revealed its 2014 selection of top ten green buildings in the US. As was the case with last years list, the judges came up with an interesting list of buildings that includes some lesser-publicized green-building projects, such as a homeless shelter, a treehouse, and even a Net-Zero energy courthouse. Read on below as Gizmag briefly covers each of the selections.

As a key part of Portland, Oregon's decade-long effort to combat homelessness, the Bud Clark Commons building provides a safe place for vulnerable people to transition from sleeping on the streets to living in a stable home. The building features a walk-in day center, support services, 90 temporary shelter beds, and 130 furnished studio apartments which serve as permanent housing.

Green technology in the LEED Platinum project include greywater recycling, solar hot water, heat recovery ventilation, and natural daylight.

The Bushwick Inlet Park project represents the first phase of a plan to transform Brooklyn's Williamsburg waterfront from an industrial brownfield site into a public park. So far, the area has seen play fields, classrooms, public facilities, and park maintenance buildings added.

The park also received a large multi-use community center complete with green roof, in addition to a large solar trellis that produces half of the total electricity used in the building. Other green features include ground source heat pump wells, rainwater harvesting and drip irrigation.

The high-rise Edith Green-Wendell Wyatt (EGWW) Federal Building Project was originally constructed in 1975 by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. The recent modernization by SERA Architects and Cutler Anderson Architects sought to update the aging building with modern energy-efficient technologies. Clearly this worked, as it's lauded by the AIA judges as being on its way to becoming one of the lowest energy-use buildings in the US.

EGWW sports a facade comprising novel sunshades that limit solar heat gain, along with a roof-based solar array and rainwater collection system.

The SUNY-ESF College of Environmental Science & Forestry Gateway Center is the oldest institution in the US to focus on the careful study of the environment. Its new LEED Platinum campus center fosters teaching and research, and makes up part of ESF's ambitious commitment to reach complete carbon neutrality by 2015.

The LEED Platinum campus was built using metal shingles and recycled concrete blocks, in addition to sustainably-sourced wood. A green roof, solar panels, solar hot water, and a very efficient rainwater-collection system were all installed during the build.

Originally constructed to serve as a US Post Office and Courthouse back in 1918, the Wayne N. Aspinall Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse recently received a LEED Platinum renovation. Based in Grand Junction, Colorado, the building has duly been updated with enough sustainable technology and design to turn it into what's reportedly one of the most energy-efficient historic buildings in the country.

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AIA's 2014 top ten green buildings in the US