SUN, WATER, AND WIND

The Spiretec Project is environmentally didactic.
 
A single, unifying planning and design strategy, using the environmental properties of the region, integrates the site planning and design of the new building with the site plan for the six surrounding office structures.

The center of the site is minimally excavated to create a primary water feature as a consequence of the existing elevated floodplain.  A park filled with indigenous landscaping surrounds the natural water feature, with a terraced, landscaped public walk.

The new building form is a direct consequence both of sun orientation, and of the two given plan and height obligations.  The new building volume descends in height from west to east, as proscribed by the project zoning envelope, and as it descends, the volume shifts from south to north as the given site plan requires.   Building surfaces maximize sun orientation for photovoltaic applications, and adjustable louvers provide shading.  Courtyards at either end of the building are shaped by the movement of the sun to provide natural daylighting.

The ground floor lobbies of all proposed structures are connected with an enclosed walkway, unifying the pedestrian movement across the site. 

The building is lifted above the water to facilitate evaporative cooling. As the sun strikes the vertical stacks, warm air is pulled upward out of the building.  As cooler air rises from the water it is drawn into the glass walkways and distributed through the new building. The lifted building facilitates views across the entire site, and promotes airflow across the water.

Together, these sustainable features collectively create a new microclimate for the site.  The site is shaded by the perimeter office buildings, and by the new elevated building in the center of the site.  The ground floor of the perimeter office buildings remains predominantly open to promote airflow across the site.  The central water element provides natural cooling and evaporative pre-cooling to provide a comfortable exterior environment within the new office campus.