h2o apartments
H2O APARTMENTS LOT SIZE: 7,000 sf BUILDING SIZE: 37,770 sf | 45 Units LOCATION: Seattle, WA PROJECT TYPE: Multifamily Apartments (Built) LEED Gold Certified
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 1
BREAKING OPEN BUILDING EXPERIENCE & PERFORMANCE The inspiration for H2O Apartments, a 45-unit mixed-use project in Lower Queen Anne, was to unlock superior occupant experience and superior building energy performance by breaking open the conventional approach to apartment building design. Multifamily buildings usually carry building-scale “vampire loads” that require resource-intensive active systems. The cause is circulation. By enclosing hallway, stairwells, and elevator inside the conditioned building envelope we commit our buildings to increased conditioning and lighting loads for the life of a building. And because we also typically pressurize interior corridors to prevent the mixing of interior air between units, we force conditioned air out through each of the units in a building, where it escapes the envelope through ductwork and flaws in exterior walls. This squanders valuable building energy. At H2O our integrated design team broke out of this mold, taking the overall massing of the project and exploding it into three structures. All circulation – corridors, stairs, and elevator – flows through the center of the project, but outside of the building envelope. The immediate energy benefits of this approach are twofold: 1. No more energy is wasted on conditioning circulation areas; and 2. No pressurization is pushing conditioned air out of the building through each unit.
But the related energy benefits are no less important, and they address a primary goal of H2O: to create an enhanced experience of “inside” for residents. Because hallways have become exterior walkways, each unit has become a “through unit” with exterior walls (and windows) on at least two sides. This effectively doubles access to air and light for each unit and means lower energy use, better light, and happier occupants. H2O’s advanced building envelope, with a generous layer of exterior insulation and carefully modeled use of high performance windows, further leverages the project’s passive design approach. The building’s progressive management of stormwater, including one of Seattle’s first rain gardens installed on a PT deck, supports the building’s energy performance, with a green roof that mitigates overheating in summer months. H2O intertwines commitment to both people and planet. The building’s diverse mix of unity types, combined with a provision of 20% of units for households at 80% AMI, provides equitable access to the light, air, and efficiency benefits of the project. Both great design and passive design aim to eliminate the unnecessary. By rethinking circulation in multifamily buildings, H2O Apartments demonstrates the power of this principle of simplicity in design.
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 2
INSPIRATION | circulate OUTSIDE the envelope Initial sketches for the concept, including the central organizing theme, shown below, of bringing central circulation outside. Superior daylighting and ventilation result.
EARLY CIRCULATION STUDY
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 3
PASSIVE DESIGN STRATEGIES
PASSIVE SOLAR GAIN
GREEN ROOFS & WHITE ROOF MITIGATE OVERHEATING DAYLIGHTING
NATURAL VENTILATION
NATURAL VENTILATION
CIRCULATION BROUGHT OUTSIDE
SPACE BETWEEN STRUCTURES FACILITATES DAYLIGHTING & VENTILATION ROBUST BUILDING ENVELOPES REDUCE ENERGY DEMAND
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 4
PASSIVE DESIGN STRATEGIES
BRIS SOLEILS GREEN ROOF FOR STORMWATER, COOLING, & AMENITY SPACE EXTERIOR WALKWAYS TO SAVE ENERGY & PROVIDE NATURAL VENTILATION & DAYLIGHTING
RAIN GARDEN FOR STORMWATER & AMENITY SPACE
EFFICIENT ELEVATOR CENTRAL GAS WATER HEATER
THROUGH UNITS WITH ACCESS TO LIGHT & AIR FROM MULTIPLE SIDES NO MECHANICAL A/C & NO CORRIDOR CONDITIONING
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 5
PASSIVE DESIGN STRATEGIES
CENTRAL HOT WATER SUBMETER HEAT & HOT WATER THROUGH UNITS ALLOW DAYLIGHT EVERYWHERE BUT BATHROOMS WINDOWS ON OPPOSITE WALLS ALLOW CROSSVENTILATION CENTRAL BUILDING HYDRONIC HEAT
NO MECHANICAL A/C
TRIPLE GLAZING FOR ACOUSTIC & ENERGY PERFORMANCE
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 6
MASSING STUDY
LOW BUILDING ALLOWS VIEWS TO SPACE NEEDLE 7 STORY OFFICE BUILDING RETAIL WRAPS CORNER LIVE/WORK UNITS STEP DOWN WITH GRADE
4 STORY OFFICE BUILDING
OAKWOOD EXTENDED STAY APARTMENTS EXTERIOR BALCONIES CREATE VERTICAL EXPRESSION 2 STORY TOWNHOUSES ATOP ALLEY STRUCTURE HELD DOWN 1 STORY TO ALLOW VIEWS OVER
AVALON BAY MIXED-USE APARTMENT
SURFACE PARKING LOT
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 7
LOCATION STUDY
W HARRISON STREET
QUEEN ANNE AVENUE N
1ST AVENUE W
2ND AVENUE W
3RD AVENUE W
4TH AVENUE W
OPEN SPACE
SUN PATHS
VIEWS
SHOPPING/DINING
LANDMARK
VEHICLE ARTERIAL
W THOMAS STREET
PEDESTRIAN PATH
NEIGHBORHOOD NODE
10’ CONTOURS W JOHN STREET
The urban context of the building, with great access to services and transit, will help limit the carbon footprint from residents’ transportation. H2O APARTMENTS | p. 8
PHOTO one | NW Corner (w harrison street & 2nd avenue w)
H2O is part of Lower Queen Anne’s vibrant urban fabric. H2O APARTMENTS | p. 9
PHOTO two | NORTH Façade (w harrison street)
The project’s landscaping enhances the streetscape.
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 10
PHOTO three | Apartment INTERIOR
Units are full of air and light.
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 11
PHOTOS four | CIRCULATION & AMENITY SPACE Rain garden (right). Exterior walkway (below). Rooftop terrace (lower right).
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 12
PHOTO five | FAÇADE
Durable materials will lower maintenance costs and lengthen life of building, preserving its embodied energy. H2O APARTMENTS | p. 13
FLOOR PLANS FIRST FLOOR
MEZZANINE
SECOND TO FOURTH FLOOR
FIFTH FLOOR
SIXTH FLOOR
A mix of units, from work/live to studios to two-story townhouse units, provides housing for a mix of income levels. 20% of units are for 80% AMI households.
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 14
LANDSCAPE, ROOF, AND GARAGE PLANS
LANDSCAPE ROOF
GARAGE
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 15
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 1
BREAKING OPEN BUILDING EXPERIENCE & PERFORMANCE The inspiration for H2O Apartments, a 45-unit mixed-use project in Lower Queen Anne, was to unlock superior occupant experience and superior building energy performance by breaking open the conventional approach to apartment building design. Multifamily buildings usually carry building-scale “vampire loads” that require resource-intensive active systems. The cause is circulation. By enclosing hallway, stairwells, and elevator inside the conditioned building envelope we commit our buildings to increased conditioning and lighting loads for the life of a building. And because we also typically pressurize interior corridors to prevent the mixing of interior air between units, we force conditioned air out through each of the units in a building, where it escapes the envelope through ductwork and flaws in exterior walls. This squanders valuable building energy. At H2O our integrated design team broke out of this mold, taking the overall massing of the project and exploding it into three structures. All circulation – corridors, stairs, and elevator – flows through the center of the project, but outside of the building envelope. The immediate energy benefits of this approach are twofold: 1. No more energy is wasted on conditioning circulation areas; and 2. No pressurization is pushing conditioned air out of the building through each unit.
But the related energy benefits are no less important, and they address a primary goal of H2O: to create an enhanced experience of “inside” for residents. Because hallways have become exterior walkways, each unit has become a “through unit” with exterior walls (and windows) on at least two sides. This effectively doubles access to air and light for each unit and means lower energy use, better light, and happier occupants. H2O’s advanced building envelope, with a generous layer of exterior insulation and carefully modeled use of high performance windows, further leverages the project’s passive design approach. The building’s progressive management of stormwater, including one of Seattle’s first rain gardens installed on a PT deck, supports the building’s energy performance, with a green roof that mitigates overheating in summer months. H2O intertwines commitment to both people and planet. The building’s diverse mix of unity types, combined with a provision of 20% of units for households at 80% AMI, provides equitable access to the light, air, and efficiency benefits of the project. Both great design and passive design aim to eliminate the unnecessary. By rethinking circulation in multifamily buildings, H2O Apartments demonstrates the power of this principle of simplicity in design.
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 2
INSPIRATION | circulate OUTSIDE the envelope Initial sketches for the concept, including the central organizing theme, shown below, of bringing central circulation outside. Superior daylighting and ventilation result.
EARLY CIRCULATION STUDY
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 3
PASSIVE DESIGN STRATEGIES
PASSIVE SOLAR GAIN
GREEN ROOFS & WHITE ROOF MITIGATE OVERHEATING DAYLIGHTING
NATURAL VENTILATION
NATURAL VENTILATION
CIRCULATION BROUGHT OUTSIDE
SPACE BETWEEN STRUCTURES FACILITATES DAYLIGHTING & VENTILATION ROBUST BUILDING ENVELOPES REDUCE ENERGY DEMAND
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 4
PASSIVE DESIGN STRATEGIES
BRIS SOLEILS GREEN ROOF FOR STORMWATER, COOLING, & AMENITY SPACE EXTERIOR WALKWAYS TO SAVE ENERGY & PROVIDE NATURAL VENTILATION & DAYLIGHTING
RAIN GARDEN FOR STORMWATER & AMENITY SPACE
EFFICIENT ELEVATOR CENTRAL GAS WATER HEATER
THROUGH UNITS WITH ACCESS TO LIGHT & AIR FROM MULTIPLE SIDES NO MECHANICAL A/C & NO CORRIDOR CONDITIONING
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 5
PASSIVE DESIGN STRATEGIES
CENTRAL HOT WATER SUBMETER HEAT & HOT WATER THROUGH UNITS ALLOW DAYLIGHT EVERYWHERE BUT BATHROOMS WINDOWS ON OPPOSITE WALLS ALLOW CROSSVENTILATION CENTRAL BUILDING HYDRONIC HEAT
NO MECHANICAL A/C
TRIPLE GLAZING FOR ACOUSTIC & ENERGY PERFORMANCE
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 6
MASSING STUDY
LOW BUILDING ALLOWS VIEWS TO SPACE NEEDLE 7 STORY OFFICE BUILDING RETAIL WRAPS CORNER LIVE/WORK UNITS STEP DOWN WITH GRADE
4 STORY OFFICE BUILDING
OAKWOOD EXTENDED STAY APARTMENTS EXTERIOR BALCONIES CREATE VERTICAL EXPRESSION 2 STORY TOWNHOUSES ATOP ALLEY STRUCTURE HELD DOWN 1 STORY TO ALLOW VIEWS OVER
AVALON BAY MIXED-USE APARTMENT
SURFACE PARKING LOT
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 7
LOCATION STUDY
W HARRISON STREET
QUEEN ANNE AVENUE N
1ST AVENUE W
2ND AVENUE W
3RD AVENUE W
4TH AVENUE W
OPEN SPACE
SUN PATHS
VIEWS
SHOPPING/DINING
LANDMARK
VEHICLE ARTERIAL
W THOMAS STREET
PEDESTRIAN PATH
NEIGHBORHOOD NODE
10’ CONTOURS W JOHN STREET
The urban context of the building, with great access to services and transit, will help limit the carbon footprint from residents’ transportation. H2O APARTMENTS | p. 8
PHOTO one | NW Corner (w harrison street & 2nd avenue w)
H2O is part of Lower Queen Anne’s vibrant urban fabric. H2O APARTMENTS | p. 9
PHOTO two | NORTH Façade (w harrison street)
The project’s landscaping enhances the streetscape.
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 10
PHOTO three | Apartment INTERIOR
Units are full of air and light.
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 11
PHOTOS four | CIRCULATION & AMENITY SPACE Rain garden (right). Exterior walkway (below). Rooftop terrace (lower right).
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 12
PHOTO five | FAÇADE
Durable materials will lower maintenance costs and lengthen life of building, preserving its embodied energy. H2O APARTMENTS | p. 13
FLOOR PLANS FIRST FLOOR
MEZZANINE
SECOND TO FOURTH FLOOR
FIFTH FLOOR
SIXTH FLOOR
A mix of units, from work/live to studios to two-story townhouse units, provides housing for a mix of income levels. 20% of units are for 80% AMI households.
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 14
LANDSCAPE, ROOF, AND GARAGE PLANS
LANDSCAPE ROOF
GARAGE
H2O APARTMENTS | p. 15
