Construction on the new Manulife Financial headquarters in South Boston is scheduled for completion late next year. City officials hope the building, and others like it, will help make the Hub a leader in green development.
The glass walls and sweeping shape of the building rising in South Boston’s Seaport District may appear as the odd seed in a neighborhood of brick buildings. But once it’s finished, it won’t be just the facade that sets it apart. From its windows to HVAC system to utility bills, the Manulife Financial building will be anything but ordinary.
It’s one of the newest of the green buildings popping up across the state and one that a new task force, called together by Mayor Thomas M. Menino, will use as an example at its first official meeting this week. The committee, charged with making Boston a leader in green development, will begin its yearlong study of the concept this week. The outcome – a series of strategies and actions – are expected to jumpstart more developments like the Manulife building.
Construction of the company’s new headquarters is already under way at 601 Congress St. Once completed, it will feature a six-story atrium, 12th floor rooftop garden, fitness center and ground-floor retail space. What makes it a green building, and different from most of its neighbors, is a double-skin curtain wall that reduces heat absorption in the summer and retains warmth during the winter. The curtain-wall system, which also optimizes natural daytime lighting, is expected to reduce heating and cooling consumption by as much as 6 percent annually. The rooftop garden also features a hidden benefit – the plants and grasses provide extra insulation and improve storm-water runoff.
As energy costs continue to rise, members of the development team foresee increasing savings. Mark Adamo, vice president of development, said that savings will serve as a benefit when the company markets the building to future tenants.
Manulife executives call the project forward-thinking and aggressive.
“There’s no question that this is not just a trend,” said Bernie Gandras, associate partner. “It’s a very definite direction, particularly given that costs will escalate in the future.”
‘Going Green’
Members of the Green Building Task Force are hoping Gandras is right. Ultimately, the task force will be armed with $200,000 to spread the word. The Massachusetts Technology Collaborative has approved a $30,000 challenge grant for the initiative, money that will become available if the new committee can raise $70,000. The collaborative also has awarded $100,000 to the Boston Redevelopment Authority for feasibility studies that test opportunities for sustainable development in buildings. About half of the total money raised, $100,000, will go toward task force travel.
Chairwoman Joy Conway said that the task force is planning trips to communities across the nation to learn more about streamlining the permitting process for real estate developers interested in sustainable development.
“We want to eliminate any barriers we can find so that real estate developers will be eager to do these types of buildings,” said Conway, who also serves as senior vice president of government and industry affairs for the Greater Boston Real Estate Board.
About one-third of the energy consumed in the United States goes toward the heating, cooling, lighting and appliances in buildings, according to the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. Initiatives to change that trend have been ongoing for 30 years but, particularly because of this year’s massive blackout, it’s a movement that’s now gaining momentum and popularity.
More and more developers are contemplating “going green” with solar- or wind-based energy, naturally flowing water, an emphasis on natural lighting and ventilation and high-performance windows, doors and insulation. Proponents say that sustainable development not only makes a building more efficient but also lessens the impact on the environment. Green buildings create less waste, conserve water and use more natural and recycled materials.
The Massachusetts Technology Collaborative has led its own Green Buildings Initiative since March 2002. Since then, the collaborative has awarded funding for the planning and construction of renewable energy or technologies. The collaborative also provides funding for schools that exercise sustainable development practices.
Green buildings aren’t a new concept. Dick Tinsman, program director of the collaborative’s Green Buildings Initiative, describes it as a systematic approach using elements that have always been designed.
But green buildings can be a hard sell with developers. Installing thicker windows and using more efficient heating and cooling systems increases construction costs. Tinsman said, however, that developers who take the plunge benefit from a short-term payback, in some cases as soon as three years.
Take Newton South High School, for example. Tinsman said the school will spend $700,000 more in construction costs to save $208,000 a year. The building, which opens in 2004, will recuperate those extra expenses by 2008.
Last month, the task force toured the George Robert White Environmental Conservation Center in Boston, which is now the home of the Massachusetts Audubon Society. The building, constructed with funding from the city’s George Robert White Fund, uses 35 percent less energy than a traditionally constructed building.
This summer, the center received a new photovoltaic system roof. Each shingle, mounted with photovoltaic cells, converts the sun’s energy into electricity. The system generates power without pollution or depleting natural resources.
Conway hopes that those examples will serve as models for future developments.
“We just had a huge blackout. What does that say about renewable energy and reliability?” Conway said. “There’s a huge amount of information that will need to be discussed.”
Kristie DiSalvo may be reached at kdisalvo@thewarrengroup.com
