GreenBy3’s Latest Project a “first of its kind” Sustainable Building
The finishing touches are being put on Biz611, a business incubator in Hendersonville, N.C., that will help cultivate young startups focused on helping the environment and developing software. The incubator is GreenBy3’s latest project and it’s scheduled to be completed by the end of this month.
Located at 611 N. Church St. in downtown Hendersonville, Biz611 (pronounced Biz Six Eleven) is the first building of its kind in the area. A long list of sustainable practices was incorporated in the construction of the 9,500-square-foot building, as well as in the way it’s designed to run.
The building maximizes natural light, generates solar energy and captures water for use by way of an inverted roof and cistern. It also features a “living wall,” or a vertical green wall. The building’s real-time energy efficiency performance will be continually reported on monitors throughout the building, allowing tenants to see their impact on the building’s energy consumption. The building also is designed with a lot of glass, open space and common areas to encourage collaboration, creativity and interaction among the businesses.
GreenBy3’s involvement in Biz611 began with overseeing the deconstruction of two buildings that previously stood at 611 Church St. and reclaiming specific materials for reuse. GreenBy3 then worked with the building owner 203 Neotrantor, architect Ken Gaylord and contractor BlackHawk Construction on the design and construction of the new two-story building.
It was very important to the owners of GreenBy3 and 203 Neotrantor that everyone involved made extra efforts during the deconstruction to divert as much material from the landfill as possible. Repurposing and reusing reclaimed materials in the new building itself was another priority.
Materials that were reclaimed from the original 1920s building and reused or repurposed in the new building include 9,000 brick that were used on the north wall facing a major Hendersonville street and in landscaping around the building. In addition, salvaged iron railings were used to create a bike rack and reclaimed doors will be made into desks.
Other materials used in the Biz611 project that were selected from GreenBy3’s inventory of reclaimed materials include office furniture, DIRTT raised floor and office walls, and sliding barn-style doors. Materials from the deconstruction not used in Biz611 were taken by local companies and repurposed or recycled on local construction projects. For example, some of the excess brick and block were crushed and used in road construction.
“We set out to design something that could be a teaching tool for ourselves and others on how to build something that has a low impact on the environment and the community,” said Jorge Riano, president of GreenBy3. “Another goal was to build something where the tenants of Biz611 could learn from and take with them once they move on to grow their business.”
Tagged: Biz 611, Green Building
