These are exciting times for Center City’s 1650 Arch Street, which has just completed some sustainable renovations, and is looking at becoming even more environmentally friendly. After all, what would you expect from a high-rise building that houses the Philadelphia regional office of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)?
Thanks to the recently completed remodeling, 1650 Arch Street is now
Energy Star certified. Some of the renovations that led to this designation include the installation of energy-efficient chillers, which regulate a building’s temperature, humidity and ventilation. Also energy-efficient lights were attached on the inside and outside of the building. Finally, the EPA is financing a high-tech air filtration system that maximizes the amount of fresh air in the high-rise, according to Drew McGowan, the leasing agent with
Jones Lang LaSalle, which is responsible for leasing office space at 1650 Arch.
Yet, the building’s owner is not quite satisfied with 1650’s sustainability just yet. The final phase of the sustainability project will commence shortly, giving the tower more energy-efficient elevators. "The new elevators are designed to use less power and will operate faster and more efficiently, so there is less waiting time for building occupants," says McGowan. Once these elevators are installed, Jones Lang LaSalle and the renovation architect are confident the building will be able to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) status for 2012.
Jones Lang LaSalle also blends sustainability with art in the renovations. The remodeled lobby, which acts as a literal and figurative centerpiece for the re-design, features a sculptural landscape of recycled objects across the city of Philadelphia by environmental artist
Tom Deininger. “Thematically, the found objects recycled into art represent the refreshed image of 1650 as an iconic piece of modern architecture, as well as the building's sustainability efforts," says McGowan.
Source: Drew McGowan, Jones Lang LaSalle Real Estate
Writer: Andy Sharpe