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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 10, 2009 Contact: Eleanor McKinney, Landscape Architect, 5124455202 Wes Dickerson, Simmons Vedder Partners, 5123816109 LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT BECOMES AUSTIN’S FIRST GREEN ROOF PROFESSIONAL Green Roofs for Healthy Cities Launches The Green Roof Accredited Professional Green Roofs for Healthy Cities (GRHC), a notforprofit organization representing the green roof industry in North America, launched the Green Roof Accredited Professional Exam (GRP) in June 2009. Eleanor McKinney, Landscape Architect, has become the first certified Green Roof Professional in Austin, Texas. Research has shown that green roofs (roofs with landscape on top of structure) can provide numerous benefits in urban areas, including improved stormwater management, better regulation of building temperatures, reduced urban heatisland effects, and increased urban wildlife habitat. According Jeffrey L. Bruce, Chair of Green Roofs for Healthy Cities, “we thought it would be good consumer protection – giving the public some way to differentiate who has a minimum understanding of green roof design and construction.” Ms. McKinney designed the green roof for The Quarters Sterling House in West Campus for Simmons Vedder Partners. The 9,780 square foot green roof on the second floor courtyard is one of four green roofs in their upscale student housing projects. The courtyard provides the main amenity for the project with a green panel lawn, raised planters, shade arbors, ceiling fans, café tables and chairs, chaises for sunning, an outdoor shower, and nighttime lighting. The green landscaped area is over 52% of the total court. Wes Dickerson, Project Developer for Sterling House has been pleased with the results. “It was important to Simmons Vedder Partners to embrace sustainable green development and it was equally important to students to live in a building that was environmentally friendly. Of the many design elements we incorporated into the building, the green roof concept has been fully embraced by the student population not only as an amenity, but also has been recognized as a benefit of responsible development.” Understanding the nature of how green roofs perform in Austin’s climate is one advantage of using an accredited Green Roof Professional. The compatibility of waterproofing, drainage, type and depth of soil, plant selection, and style of irrigation are all important factors. For Sterling House, the designed soil depth of 12” for the lawn and 21” for the planters is critical to the roof’s success. McKinney cited other Austin green roofs with only 6” soil depth that dry out quickly with the high temperatures of our recent summers. The plants in this green roof are thriving in spite of the heat due to increased soil moisture holding capacity. “We’re already seeing that some developers are using the GRP designation as a prequalification to work on projects” says Steven Peck, president and founder of GRHC. “There’s demand from clients to have this certification.” Other North American cities have supported green roof development through various incentives and regulatory requirements. For instance, the City of Portland requires that all new Cityowned buildings be built with a green roof that covers at least 70% of the roof. Toronto’s EcoRoof Incentive Program provides funding for qualifying green roof projects of $50 per square meter, up to a maximum of $100,000. New York and Philadelphia are encouraging green roof implementation through tax credit incentives.
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Other green roof projects with which Eleanor McKinney Landscape Architect has been involved include Austin City Hall, with McKinney Kelley Landscape Architects, the first LEED Gold project in Austin, and two projects with her eponymous firm at the University of Texas at Austin which are in the final design stages.