Designing a Kingston Property's Sustainable Future

8/16/2010 3:30:29 PM

Kingston, NY - On July 16, Mary Jane Bertram, WDI Hudson Valley Associate Regional Director, joined nearly 100 architects, business owners, city residents, and green building professionals from around the Hudson Valley gathered to combine their innovation and expertise in a design charrette. The participants were split into 11 teams and asked to present a sustainable design for a central Midtown Kingston location, the site of the King's Inn.

Only weeks after the site of the foreclosed rundown motel was turned over to the City of Kingston, a committee assembled by Mayor James Sottile gave the go-ahead for the Business Alliance of Kingston to organize the charrette.  New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and Kingston Block co-sponsored the event. During the event kick-off, participants were encouraged to consider energy-efficient measures and the NYSERDA's New Construction/Substantial Renovation program, which provides assistance to incorporate energy-efficiency measures into the design, construction, and operation of new and substantially renovated buildings.

From an artists' community with a green roof to a hub for green technology and a year-round food co-op, the teams presented an array of innovative ideas.  Further, each group carefully corralled their more whimsical innovations to meet the needs of the neighborhood, the imperative for energy efficiency, and the economic constraints of attracting a developer.

NYSERDA Energy $mart Communities Coordinator and Business Alliance of Kingston president Patrice Courtney Strong lauded the ingenuity displayed by the charrette participants.  Courtney Strong says, "One reason the event was so successful was because we began working with our participants a month before they arrived. Our Business Alliance web site had a great variety of documents, including the site plan, the deed, photos, socioeconomic data, zoning information, and more. People were truly prepared when they arrived. The quality of the work they turned in is truly amazing."

The results from the charrette will be used to supplement a Request for Proposals to be written by the City of Kingston.  In addition, the teams' drawings will be publicly displayed to continue the momentum for sustainable development Kingston.

Story courtesy of Mid-Hudson Energy $mart Communities

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