2021 underscored the importance of stricter energy codes mandated to significantly lower buildings’ emissions on the city and state levels. For this reason, the Seattle 2030 District hosted its first energy competition titled 2021 Energy Roadmap, choosing three buildings within district boundaries and having teams take the buildings’ current performance to net-zero energy by 2030.
The Buildings
1111 Third Avenue
A large commercial office building (574,000 sq ft.), owned and operated by Unico Properties, in downtown Seattle. This 34-story high-rise building was constructed in 1980 and has a pre-covid EUI of 53.4, which is approaching its 2030 Challenge EUI target of 50.3.
Lincoln Court Apartments
Built in 1907, this affordable housing complex, owned by Community Roots Housing (CRH), has 21,700 sq. ft. of affordable housing plus 3,775 sq. ft. of parking with a EUI of 74.8 with a baseline of 44.1. CRH was looking for solutions to reach energy reduction goals on a limited budget.
Ballou Wright Building
Owned and operated by Hunters Capital, this historic, 32,000 sq. ft. building has a pre-covid EUI of 38.9 with a 2030 baseline of 77.8. The building is home to several smaller tenants with different energy needs, budgets, and ideas on ideal temperatures.
THE TEAMS:
Teams |
Team InformationClick on image to enlarge |
ProposalClick on image to view full poster |
| Ballou Wright 2030 Team
Säzän Environmental Services, |
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| District Carbon Team
Lease Crutcher Lewis, |
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| The Fantastic Four
Michael Helmer, Megan Greenfield, |
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| TeamZero
LMN, McKinstry, |
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| Lincoln Court Team
UMC, SMR Architects, O’Brien360 |
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And the winner is … The District Carbon Team!
This group boldly envisioned the 1111 Third Avenue Building including occupancies, structural features, facades, and MEP systems transforming over the course of three years. This roadmap demonstrates a holistic decarbonization plan with impacts well beyond the building itself.
The District Carbon Team presented their proposal and answered questions at our education forum on January 20—view the recording here on our YouTube Channel. (you can also view ZGF Architects blog post here.) The competition was funded in part by the Whole Foods Market Community Giving Program. We hope the solutions from this competition inspire and generate ideas for building owners and managers as the commercial building market adapts to new State and City performance standards for existing buildings.
For more information, please contact us at seattle@2030districts.org.