Sustainability
Warren-Boulton Residence
Renovation of a Chicago greystone for a city-dwelling family
NEW! See recent images from the design development process.
Winner of a 2005 City of Chicago Green Roof Grant, this former two-flat serves as a springboard for testing ideas about natural ventilation, use of passive solar and wind energy, and the complex relationships of a family house to its site within an urban context.
The renovation is intended to serve as a model, allowing other homeowners to compare studies of feasibility and payback on issues ranging from alternative energy sources (geothermal, photovoltaics, wind) to efficient thermal envelope (window replacement, cladding, wall and roof insulation) to natural light penetration.
The parti1
A new rooftop monitor will create a central ‘lightcore’ with an illuminated wall, creating a focus for the home linking existing and renovated spaces, while providing natural ventilation. An expanded kitchen/dining room and rear stair extends views to the outside and improves circulation, both physical and air movement.
Other features include a roof garden with an observation deck for capture of rainwater for landscape irrigation, reduction of the urban heat island effect, added insulation, and great views of the city.
The Warren-Boulton Residence was also featured in one of Dave’s lectures.
- Location Chicago, Illinois
- Design 2005
- Construction 2006 (projected completion)
- General contractor none selected
- Structural consultant Louis Shell Structures, Inc.
- MEP and energy transfer consultant George Sullivan, Eco Smart Building
- MEP consultant (schematic thru design development) Alan Chalifoux, ETA Engineers
- Landscape consultant Michael Repkin Designs
- Owner’s consultant (wind, solar) Aerotecture, Farell Pelfrey
1 term originating in the 19th century Ecole de Beaux-Arts for a diagram of the organization of the building’s design.