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Case Studies
Chicago City Hall Winner of: The American Society of Landscape Architects 2002 Professional Merit Award Roofmeadow® Type: UltraLite Plaza™
Irrigation: Base drip Size: 33,000 square feet Client: City of Chicago, Department of Environment Location: Chicago, IL Roofscapes, Inc. Contractor: Church Landscape, Inc. Landscape Architect: Conservation Design Forum Architect: McDonough + Partners (www.mcdonough.com) Status: Completed 2001 Distinguishing Features Roofscapes, Inc. engineered and our licensee in the Chicago area installed this award-winning green roof for the Chicago City Hall Urban Heat Island Initiative project. This is a sophisticated design that includes a range of roof landscape environments, from a 3.5-inch deep 'extensive' system to 24-inch deep 'intensive' landscape islands. Approximately 14,000 cubic feet of polystyrene was used to create the illusion of a rolling terrain. The landscape design followed a formal garden plan instead of the more common meadow-like environment. This project included a drip irrigation system, fed partially by water collected from the adjacent penthouse roof. The project was intended to demonstrate the benefit of green roofs in moderating summer temperatures within ultra-urban environments. The roof is monitored to demonstrate these benefits. The City Hall green roof is currently, on average year-round, 7 degrees cooler than the surrounding roofs, and as much as 30 degrees cooler in the summer. Construction at one of the city's busiest intersections also added to the challenges associated with this project. For this project, Roofscapes, Inc. furnished an experienced green roof installation specialist from Optigrün International AG.
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